Report from The Guardian
In Brief – More than 60 Labour MPs have urged Ofcom, the country’s communications and digital regulator, to use its authority under the Online Safety Act to press platforms to better protect young men from risks they argue are linked to “manosphere” influencers. Citing arguments from the UK Gambling Commission, Internet Watch Foundation, and a recent Netflix documentary “Inside the Manosphere”, the MPs noted boys are disproportionately affected by certain harms, such as gambling ads, sextortion, “far-right political radicalization”, and hate. Advocates argue that current platform guidance under the Online Safety Act focuses too heavily on women and girls and the regulator should require platform responses to address risks targeted to young men as well, including potential new laws and financial penalties. The MPs stressed that addressing harms affecting men and boys is essential to tackling broader societal issues, including violence against women and girls.
Context – Many top conservative populists in the US have built alliances in Europe and view the political establishments in many countries as akin to those in America’s progressive strongholds. They believe that the top social media companies discriminated against them as part of a progressive ecosystem involving like-minded think tanks, advocacy groups, academic researchers, media companies, and government agencies. Of all the digital policy issues animating the Trump Administration, pushing back on what they believe is culture issue censorship has the broadest backing. The UK and Europe, not constrained by the First Amendment, enacted legislation regulating online content moderation far beyond what is possible in the US, even during the Biden years, drawing cheers from American progressives and derision from conservatives. The DSA investigations of X are a top flashpoint, but the Online Safety Act has drawn populist scorn as well. Progressive political leaders calling for regulators to order platforms to deal with “far-right” political influencers doesn’t look at all like censorship.