EU: Going Full Orwell
The Code of Conduct commits the social media companies to review and remove, within 24 hours, "illegal hate speech". According to the Code of Conduct, when companies receive a request to remove content, they must "assess the request against their rules and community guidelines and, where applicable, national laws on combating racism and xenophobia..." In other words, the social media giants act as voluntary censors on behalf of the European Union.
This is the same European Commission that most
recently expressed its disapproval of the
withdrawal of Austria from the UN's "Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and
Regular Migration." The Compact stipulates that media outlets that do not
support the UN's migration agenda will not be eligible for public funding. How
is that for "fully respecting Europe's fundamental principles of freedom
of expression, a free press and pluralism"?