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An Australian senator called YouTube’s suspension of Sky News Australia “dangerous” and said previous attempts by the platform to moderate COVID-related information were ultimately wrong.
In early August, online video-sharing giant YouTube stopped posting to its platform for a week because of a popular conservative channel publishing a “COVID-19 false alarm.”
The tech giant said the decision was based on Sky News’s disputed local and global health guidance, and said the criteria were “subject to change.”
Senator Alex Antic of South Australia said the Big Tech platform sees them as “arbitrators of freedom of speech and medical truth” and is a risk to democratic societies.
“In a free society, we must be free to discuss ideas and events. The fact that foreign companies have censored Australian news shows the problems facing democracy from these platforms. “He told The Epoch Times.
“We know Big Tech was wrong in the past. Why should we believe they are right this time?” He added. “At the beginning of the pandemic, YouTube deleted a video claiming that the virus had leaked from the Wuhan Institute, and now the accepted consensus is that this is correct.”
“It’s often said that if you don’t like these Big Tech platforms, you need to move to another platform. The problem is that these companies are so monopolized that it’s very difficult to do that. “He said. “The answer to how to deal with this problem is not simple and needs investigation.”
Alex Wake, chairman of the Australian Association for Journalism Education and Research, said he was concerned that tech giants had the power to “cut off free speech.”
“That said, I think this sends a strong message to Sky News about the need to do something about that content, but I don’t think it will affect their broadcast content,” she said. I told the Epoch Times. “It will probably only encourage more people to participate.”
Wake is by Alan Jones, a popular conservative Sky News host. His column has been abolished The Daily Telegraph, owned by News Corporation, commentary on COVID-19 and opposition to the blockade.
In fact, the disagreement about the science of COVID and the credibility of the blockade, involving Jones and radio host Ray Hadley, caused divisions within a conservative rank. War of words In the last few weeks.
Meanwhile, tech entrepreneur and business reality program star Shark Tank Australia’s Steve Baxter has blamed YouTube, but current Australian law provides enough protection to deal with Big Tech’s management of content. I admitted that it was not done.
“From freedom of speech (point of view), I think they’re just mugs. It’s going to be very poor for them, and it’s just a matter of time, how far away it is,” he said of the Epoch Times. Told to.
“We have few rights granted by the Constitution, and courts tend to revoke rights that seem appropriate anyway,” he said. “So, to be honest, you probably need legal remedies.”
Currently, the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) is leading the government’s efforts to regulate Big Tech.
ACCC has conducted an extensive five-year study of the impact of Silicon Valley giants, including Google’s (YouTube’s parent company) search, browser, and market dominance of advertising technology services.
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