If approved in the House, the text returns to the Senate; project determines sending data by big techs
A Chamber of Deputies may vote this week on a bill that proposes the regulation of digital platforms, such as Google, Goal, twitter It is Tik Tok. O PL 2630/2020 determines mechanisms to increase the transparency of big techs, in order to curb the spread of misinformation.
O Power360 found that a new text of the project, which is also known as PL das fake news, must be delivered by the congressman this Monday (24.Apr.2023). the deputy Orlando Silva (PCdoB-SP), rapporteur for the project, stated that he will only close the PL after hearing “everyone”.
If the urgent processing of PL 2630 is approved, the text passes in front of others that are under analysis. It can go directly to the plenary of the Chamber of Deputies. The President of the Chamber, Arthur Lira (PP-AL), is in favor of this “fast track”. The project may enter the agenda and be voted on next week.
To approve the urgent procedure, the votes of 257 deputies are required. In 2022, urgency was rejected by 8 votes.
The text is authored by Senator Alessandro Vieira (PSDB-SE). The proposal was approved in 2020 at the federal Senate and went to the Chamber of Deputies, where it underwent changes. If the text is approved in the Lower House, the project returns to the senators.
PL of Fake News
The new rules are valid for social networks, search engines and messaging applications, whose providers are headquartered in Brazil and abroad. The text does not apply to providers that set up non-profit online encyclopedias, scientific and educational repositories and virtual meeting platforms.
Here’s the full (341 KB).
The text requires platforms to publish half-yearly transparency reports. Documents must be published in Portuguese.
The PL also establishes norms for political advertisements during election periods. According to the text, the boosted advertisements must be signaled to users.
Another point addressed in the PL are the accounts of public agents holding positions at federal, state and municipal levels. According to the project, public accounts and public agents cannot be remunerated by advertising.
If platforms fail to comply with the rules established by the PL, they may be fined or have their activities suspended.
Last week, a supposed version of the text was presented by deputy Orlando Silva (PCdoB-SP). The text circulates behind the scenes. Here’s the full (417 KB).
ILLEGAL CONTENT
In the Chamber, the deputies expanded the original text, inserting articles related to the remuneration of journalistic vehicles and the protection of children and adolescents. The latter gained strength after attacks on schools.
According to the Minister of Justice and Public Safety, Flavio Dino, regulating the internet and social networks can prevent attacks on schools, such as the day care center in Blumenau (SC), which killed 4 children. The minister said to be “unacceptable” that threats and hate speech are spread over the internet and big techs don’t “do nothing”.
the minister of stf (Federal Supreme Court) Roberto Barroso stated that the discussion on media regulation is important and takes place on a global scale. According to him, the regulation of platforms has no “a magic formula”.
“HThere are, today, many ideas put on the table. What I would say is that freedom of expression is a fundamental right. But we must not confuse freedom of expression with hate speech”, he said.
In view of the discussions, the supposed new version of the PL, which circulated behind the scenes last week, determines measures for the protection of children and adolescents. Look:
Bia Barbosa, representative of DiraCom (Right to Communication and Democracy), states that the last text presented determines that digital platforms prevent the circulation of content considered illegal, which are part of the Brazilian Penal Code and the Child and Adolescent Statute (ECA).
“There are 73 criminal types that platforms would be obliged to remove from circulation, such as violation of the Democratic State of Law, political violence and crimes provided for by the ECA. The last project gives the idea of creating a crisis protocol, which would be triggered by a regulatory body, part of an autonomous entity”he stated.
For Bia Barbosa, the idea of a crisis protocol is the best way to moderate this type of content on social networks, as, in this way, freedom of expression is guaranteed.
“A better balance is achieved between content moderation and the legitimate exercise of freedom of expression. In a context where platforms will permanently have to monitor all content […], the tendency is for these to be removed massively. That would be a risk to what is legitimate freedom of expression.”highlighted.
TRANSPARENCY
The supposed new version of the text establishes that the platforms publish qualitative information, with details, about their internal procedures, based on semi-annual reports in Portuguese. User numbers in Brazil should also be made public.
Researcher in communication sciences at USP (University of São Paulo) Liz Nóbrega assesses that the PL, by determining more transparency to platforms, walks in a way “Natural” to combat misinformation.
According to the expert, based on knowledge about how algorithms work, it is possible to establish more effective measures. “Platforms are mediating public debate and we don’t know how this is done”he spoke.
REMUNERATION TO JOURNALISM
For Liz Nóbrega, more debates are needed on the funding of journalism provided for in the text. “A big problem is trying to define what journalism is. PL 2630 sets this up for future regulation”he said.
Another problem indicated by the researcher is the optionality of the journalistic diploma to practice the profession.
“These parameters [definição do jornalismo] need to be very well defined, in a clearer way and that does not end up benefiting even more the big journalistic companies”completed.
The alleged new version of the PL, which circulated behind the scenes last week, changed the article referring to the remuneration of media companies. Among the changes is the extension from 1 year to 2 years the minimum period of existence required for vehicles to be remunerated.
Another change is the inclusion of arbitration as a mediation tool, in case the platforms and journalistic vehicles do not reach an agreement on the remunerated amount.
In addition, the text determines that media companies must produce original content on a regular, organized and professional basis.
PARLIAMENTARY IMMUNITY
The text, which circulates behind the scenes, also extends parliamentary immunity to platforms and social networks.
The text considered to be of public interest, the social network accounts indicated as institutional by entities and bodies of the Public Administration, directly or indirectly, and by the […] political agents and public servants.
For Gisele Truzzi, a lawyer specializing in digital law, the breach of immunity “creates a dangerous situation”.
“This is a point that I find a little reckless. This creates a loophole for congressmen and candidates to say what they want on social media. This situation needs to be widely discussed.”he stated.
BIG TECHS ASK FOR DEBATES
The platforms advocate more discussion on the topic. One of the proposals put forward by big techs is the setting up of a special committee to carry out the discussions.
According to Google, the commission would give more visibility to the text and an opportunity for other sectors of society to contribute.
Technology sector entities also requested the opening of a special commission in an open letter. The document was signed by hello (Latin American Internet Association), camara-e.net (Brazilian Chamber of the Digital Economy) and Assespro (Federation of Associations of Brazilian Information Technology Companies).
In a manifesto released on Thursday (April 20, 2023), Google stated that PL 2,630 poses risks to the digital ad ecosystem and for platforms to be able to apply their policies, as established in the Marco Civil.
In addition, Google claims that PL 2630 would be legislation “hurried”. It could worsen the functioning of the internet, curtail fundamental rights, favor certain groups or sectors of the economy and create mechanisms that put legitimate speeches and freedom of expression at risk.
Google said it believes it is important that any proposed proposals are widely discussed with various sectors of society and designed to ensure the protection of rights such as freedom of expression, privacy and equal opportunities for all.
In a note, Meta defended a regulation that is clear, objective and that brings legal certainty to the performance of the platforms. “We understand that new rules need to be debated in a plural way, with broad and active participation of civil society and other actors”says the text of the company that owns Facebook.
O Power360 reached out to TikTok’s communications department, but had not received a response as of the publication of this text. The space remains open for future demonstrations.
Twitter does not have a communication advisory team in Brazil.
Meta and TikTok commented on the topic at the end of March during a seminar held by the Faculty of Law of USP (University of São Paulo). O Power360 list the highlights below.
Read the Meta note in full:
“We believe that private companies should not make so many important decisions alone and we defend a regulation that is clear, objective and that brings legal certainty to the performance of platforms. We understand that new rules need to be debated in a plural way, with broad and active participation of civil society and other actors. We are in constant dialogue with authorities and other stakeholders in Brazil and around the world about additional ways to deal with harmful content.”
Read the full statement from Google:
“At Google, we support public and informed debate on the creation of regulatory measures to deal with societal challenges such as the phenomenon of disinformation and threats to the democratic process. However, we believe it is important that eventual proposals are widely discussed with various sectors of society and designed to guarantee the protection of fundamental rights such as freedom of expression, privacy and equal opportunities for all. It is also essential to ensure the maintenance of an economic environment that allows innovation and free competition, without favoring certain groups or sectors. We remain available to contribute to this debate, while reaffirming our commitment to constantly revise our products and policies to address these same challenges as we did in the 2022 elections and in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
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