The European Union will impose fines on social media and internet companies that will fail to remove antisemitic and defamatory content, according to the new EU Digital Services Act which will come into effect on August 25th.
Read more stories:
The law will require internet companies in Europe to be more transparent and would oblige them to submit a risk assessment report detailing how they are working to neutralize such content. Europeans are discussing 19 digital players who are expected to adhere to these standards, including Facebook and Twitter.
Platforms that fail to meet these standards may face fines and legal action. As part of the law, all EU member states will need to appoint digital coordinators by February 2024 to ensure that companies comply with the established principles.
The European companies would have to outline their plan to respond to antisemitism and hate speech by the beginning of September this year. The law also mandates countries to provide training for law enforcement so that they understand what would constitute a hate crime, how to investigate such a crime, and how to support victims. The law does not abolish the fundamental right of freedom of expression but addresses the fine line between freedom of expression and hate speech online. This law is significantly more advanced than in the United States, where there is no legislation against defamation and anti-Semitic hatred on social networks.
This new regulation, which is a crucial development in the fight against antisemitism, was discussed broadly during talks between Israel and the EU on combating racism, xenophobia, and antisemitism, held at the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem. This was the 14th such meeting between the two sides since 2007, and it is the first time talks were held at the ministerial level, with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen and European Commission Vice-President for Promoting Our European Way of Life, Margaritis Schinas.
Following the meeting Schinas said: "The fight against antisemitism is a top priority for the European Union and Israel is a key partner in this effort. The ultimate goal of our first-ever dedicated EU strategy is to ensure that Jews can go about their lives in line with their cultural and religious traditions, free from security concerns. Today’s meeting is an expression of our common determination to address antisemitism and Holocaust distortion and denial in the digital sphere with all the instruments we have: strong legislation such as the EU Digital Services Act to come into force on 25 August, an EU-wide network of trusted flaggers to counter antisemitic speech, and increased capacity of relevant authorities to prosecute hate speech online.”
Eli Cohen said: “The fight against antisemitism should continue ceaselessly as the era of social media brings new challenges. It is with great concern that we follow the constantly increasing level of antisemitism both on and offline.