Tech

Tech Roundup: Brazil flirts with restrictive social media decree

The Brazilian Report’s weekly tech roundup is a digest of the most important news on technology and innovation in Brazil

social media moderation decree
Photo montage: André Chiavassa/TBR

This week’s topics: Bolsonaro plans to issue a decree limiting social media companies’ content moderation powers. The semiconductor crisis for Brazilian industries. And how connecting public schools could delay the 5G auction.

Bolsonaro decree could handcuff social media companies

social media discourse bolsonaro elections
Image: Nadia Snopek/Shutterstock

The Jair Bolsonaro administration is reportedly preparing a presidential decree to drastically limit social media companies’ powers to delete content from their platforms. The text forbids giants such as Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, and Twitter from taking down information that violates their terms and conditions.

Why it matters. The move comes as social media companies adopt a more hands-on approach toward profiles disseminating misinformation. This push resulted in the suspension of Facebook profiles linked to the First Family, as well as content posted by President Jair Bolsonaro himself.

Changes. Social media companies currently enjoy considerable autonomy over content management. With the decree, however, networks could only remove posts and profiles after a court’s decision, with the exception of content violations relating to laws protecting children and teenagers.

  • Payments companies are also concerned. In August 2020, PayPal blocked an account owned by the Bolsonaro family’s ideological guru Olavo de Carvalho, believing he was soliciting funds for courses and materials that spread hate speech.
  • The federal government would be responsible for supervising and punishing companies that do not comply with the new norms. Fines could amount to up to 10 percent of companies’ turnover in Brazil.
  • The decree would essentially “handcuff” social media companies and restrict their operations in Brazil, says Christian Perrone, legal coordinator of technology think tank ITS Rio.

Elections. New rules would be particularly worrying in the lead-up to the 2022 general elections. In 2018, misinformation on social media played a pivotal part in that year’s presidential campaign.

Illegal. Mr. Perrone says Brazil’s current legal framework for the internet makes the decree illegal and unconstitutional.

Competitivity issues worsen semiconductor crisis

semiconductors social media brazil
Image: Aoda/Shutterstock

The global semiconductor shortage is set to drag on for longer in Brazil, according...

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