Claire Poirson’s Interview | Blocking Social Media: How Far Can the State Go?

Our partner Claire Poirson was interviewed by Bon Pote about the measures currently being considered to regulate, or even suspend, access to social media platforms during periods of public disorder.

As Claire Poirson points out:

• An overly broad interpretation of these measures could result in restrictions affecting content related to political dissent, calls for demonstrations, the documentation of events, or matters of public interest and debate.
• Blocking access to a social media platform must remain an exceptional measure. Even in exceptional circumstances, the State must demonstrate that such a measure is strictly necessary, that no less restrictive measure could immediately address the threat, and that both its duration and scope are limited to what is strictly required.
• The principle of proportionality must remain central to the debate, including in the context of platform regulation. There is a fundamental distinction between removing specific content or accounts and suspending access to an entire platform, which indiscriminately affects millions of users and interferes with several fundamental rights and freedoms.

To read the full interview, click here.