There is a new narrative war going on in Brazil these days, as is the case with many controversies in the country. While the government of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is pushing to improve Brazil’s digital environment and get rid of dangerous misinformation and hate crimes, some of the world’s biggest tech firms, including Google, are fighting back against the government’s anti-fake news proposal.
On the one hand, the core of Brazil’s political establishment supports the idea that regulating social media networks is crucial to curbing malicious activity online, including forums where teenagers are freely exposed to content glorifying mass shootings, as well as hate crimes and threats against minorities.
On the other hand, the so-called Big Tech firms, backed by conservative groups, say that the bill could create some kind of witch hunt, and therefore become a weapon of censorship.
But that’s not what studies and many reports have shown. And, well, it is also very convenient for companies to protect their interests.
What is at stake here, however, is far more important than a philosophical battle over what is or is not freedom of speech. That’s because the effects of this problem are happening in real life, and an entire generation could live surrounded by a certain kind of violence that is inexorably shared (and fueled) online.
In the end, solving this problem will be as difficult as the situation itself. But the corporate lobby can’t come first.
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