This motion has not been discussed in the Assembly and commits only those who have signed it.
Social media is one of the most important arenas for political
debate; it has expanded rapidly and has become highly influential
in swaying public opinion. Therefore, it is of extreme concern that
social media spreads misinformation and is misused as a tool of
manipulation, while regulation and control in this area are either negligible
or non-existent.
This situation is not only threatening the political processes
in our democratic societies, but is also preventing the public from
being informed in a proper and balanced manner.
The Parliamentary Assembly should inquire into:
how social media is being misused,
hijacking the fundamental principle of freedom of speech;
how search engines (i.e. the algorithms behind the search
engines) can be designed to favour particular causes, thus manipulating
users;
the mismatch between the use of polls in mainstream media
and the capacity of social media to misinform and manipulate;
how to counter disinformation and manipulation channeled
through social media.
The Assembly should consider these matters with a view to
making recommendations on the introduction of:
binding rules for the use of
social media to prevent and eventually neutralise misinformation
and manipulation;
a system of monitoring with severe sanctions for contravening
agreed rules.
These recommendations should be elaborated with due regard
to the fundamental principle of freedom of information, which is
to be guaranteed whatever the media or technological platform.
