UK Media Asks Government to Regulate Social Media

A group of broadcasters and ISPs have called on the UK government to introduce an independent regulatory committee to oversee social media content.

Leaders from the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Sky, BT and TalkTalk issued a letter saying the need for guidance is “urgent”.

However, they were quick to insist that the regulations would not be about censorship.

TechCrunch reports that the letter said: “There is an urgent need for independent scrutiny of the decisions taken, and greater transparency. This is not about censoring the internet, it is about making the most popular internet platforms safer, by ensuring there is accountability and transparency over the decisions these private companies are already taking.”

Currently tech companies are regulating the content that is on their own sites, but the group want there to be standard guidelines for the whole country.

The letter continues: “We do not think it is realistic or appropriate to expect internet and social media companies to make all the judgement calls about what content is and is not acceptable, without any independent oversight.”

The UK government have previously made proposals about internet safety and are currently working on online safety laws.

The Telegraph claims that a body, similar to the Advertising Standards Agency, is being discussed, which would remove social media content following user complaints.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn recently proposed a British Digital Corporation (BDC), which could run publicly funded alternatives to social media websites regulated by the government.

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