LABOUR are being urged to ditch plans to “push state-approved news” on social media.
A campaign has been launched in a bid to get Andy Burnham to abandon plans to force sites like Twitter/X and Facebook to ensure prominence for what officials deem “trustworthy news content”.
It has sparked accusations the UK Government wants to seize “control over the news its citizens see”.
A mass emailing campaign has now been launched to register opposition to the Government’s plans.
Through the site NewsCord, people can send a generic email to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport which sets out the arguments against plans to impose new rules on social media companies.
The generic email set out that the sender was responding to question four in the consultation: “Do you believe ‘trustworthy’ news content should be more visible on social media?”
The email said: “My answer is no, not because reliable journalism should be hidden, but because the category of ‘trustworthy’ in this paper is defined by the state rather than the audience.
“The consultation identifies national and local news publishers and broadcasters as the intended targets, yet journalism exists to scrutinise government.
“No state should hold the lever to shape which journalism the public finds easily, especially given the machinery would pass to every future administration regardless of the current ministers' good faith.”
It went on to argue that the “danger” these proposals pose “is made concrete by the government's own record”, including the mass arrest of Palestine Action protesters and actions taken against pro-Palestine journalists Asa Winstanley and Richard Medhurst.
Winstanley, an associate editor of the Electronic Intifada website, won a ruling last year which found a police dawn raid at his home unlawful.
Medhurst meanwhile was arrested and later released without charge on suspicion of inviting support for proscribed organisations.
The email added: “A state that treats journalists and peaceful protesters in this manner should not be entrusted with control over the news its citizens see.”
The campaign argued that instead of demanding social media platforms give prominence to state-approved outlets, ministers should “mandate platform algorithm transparency with equal treatment for every regulated publisher, and the public must be properly involved with independent publishers and creators before any further action is taken”.
The UK Government, under former prime minister Keir Starmer, unveiled a consultation in June which sought views on how to combat a media environment flooded with “misinformation and deliberate manipulation”.
The document did not set out a definition of “trustworthy news provider”, though it said it could be based on a definition set out in the Online Safety Act which “includes both broadcasters and UK based entities whose primary purpose is publishing news-related material, created by different persons, subject to editorial control, a standards code, and with a mechanism for resolving complaints”.
On the prominence plans, the document set out the Government’s desire to “establish a prominence regime specifically for trustworthy news content on social media”. It added: “This would require social media platforms, as well as potentially video sharing platforms, to ensure news content is prominent and discoverable within user interfaces. This would look to ensure people can access factual, accurate and trustworthy news when online.
“These measures could include news publishers at national and local level, recognising the importance of citizens’ access to a plural range of voices and ensuring we capture local news and voice.”
It noted how the racist riots which spread in the wake of the Southport killings were fuelled by social media algorithms "propagating and amplifying misleading and divisive narratives".
It compared this with UK Government-backed research which "highlighted the role that local media played in de-escalating tensions by amplifying the voices of community leaders, religious leaders and the police, in contrast to more inflammatory content on social media".
A UK Government spokesperson said: "We have no intention of restricting or censoring content. The government's aim is to ensure that social media users can access high-quality, accurate and trustworthy information from a range of news providers.
"The criteria for a 'trustworthy' news provider will be decided in an open and transparent manner with regard to protecting media freedom. This will include engaging with stakeholders as part of our Media Green Paper consultation."
