In connection with the Clinic’s Human Rights and Social Media Initiative (HRSMI), Professors Mary Hansel and David Kaye moderated panels on applying international human rights law to social media platforms at RightsCon 2021. RightsCon, which took place from June 7-11, 2021, is the leading global conference on human rights in digital spaces.
On June 11th, Prof. Hansel moderated a panel entitled Out of “site,” out of mind? How platform regulation can better protect the human rights of non-users. The panelists were digital rights experts Arzak Khan (Director, Internet Policy Observatory Pakistan), Agustina Del Campo (Director, Centro de Estudios en Libertad de Expresión y Acceso a la Información, Universidad de Palermo), Jonathan McCully (Legal Adviser, Digital Freedom Fund) and Naomi Appelman (PhD Researcher, University of Amsterdam). The topic of the panel was based on one of HRSMI’s working papers, posted here. The description of the panel is below:
Much attention has been paid to the impacts of content moderation on the human rights of social media users. These impacts have been widely studied, and many regulatory efforts have sought to promote and protect user rights. But what about the rights of non-users? Harmful expression on platforms – such as hate speech, incitement and disinformation – can have profound impacts on the rights and interests of non-users. Indeed, such expression can place individuals and communities already in situations of vulnerability at heightened risk of marginalization or violence. Despite their heightened risk, non-user rightsholders have few options to assert their rights and scant access to remedial bodies, such as the Facebook Oversight Board. This panel will discuss the impacts of content moderation and its regulation on non-user rightsholders, the ways in which non-users can assert their rights and seek redress, and how regulation might be more inclusive with respect to non-users, for example, by enhancing access to remedial bodies such as the Oversight Board.
Earlier in the week, Prof. Kaye moderated a panel entitled Aligning content moderation with human rights principles. A recording of this panel can be found on YouTube here. He also spoke on a panel entitled Translating human rights into content moderation rules: the role of private companies, international organizations, and civil society.
Hundreds of tech company representatives and digital rights advocates from across the globe attended each of the panels.