EU law administration and enforcement is complicated. One of its complexities is that laws that are decided at the EU level, are mostly enforced at the national level, after each of the 27 EU countries has made their own version of them. As most global tech companies have their European HQs in Ireland, it’s often Ireland’s version of EU law that applies to them. Hence this new law by Coimisiún na Meán, the Irish Media Regulator, is significant.
It’s quite wide-ranging, but one of its most impactful aspects is that (if made law) it would require algorithms to be turned off by default, and people only having them if they opt in. Big Tech companies will lobby to water this down before it actually becomes law, but they might not succeed. There was large-scale rioting in Dublin recently driven by far-right disinformation about immigrants on social media. The Irish government is normally the good cop to the EU’s bad cop when it comes to Big Tech regulation, but in this case, the mood might have turned against Big Tech.
Good, it’s a useful step, although if they only have to get sheeple to opt-in once, that probably wouldn’t be hard.
By the way, algorithms not all bad - Lemmy has some, with good use of logarithms, you can improve on github.Without algorithms the Internet would suck.
Something as simple as the most active posts in 24 hours is an algorithm.
After being on Lemmy for a few months now, it’s obvious how the other social media outlets I used to use drove addiction and anger. I don’t think about Lemmy unless I’m bored. I used to feed off the algorithms driving me one way or another.
This is the same Ireland that tried to sue the EU for making big tech companies pay the taxes they are supposed to pay, because Ireland gets a lot of job generation from being an ultra low tax for big tech companies area.
It’s very unlikely anything that would make big tech leave would pass in Ireland.
Quicksort makes me SO ANGRY!!!
Shit, so someone does read my comments after all.
Fuck this noise. The government has no right to dictate what’s acceptable speech. People don’t have the right to never have their feelings hurt.
go back to facebook.
Who needs harmony when we can have algorithms meticulously designed to amplify our differences? After all, nothing says ‘engagement’ like a good old-fashioned internet feud.
Let’s keep those bubbles growing and the hate flowing. It’s all in the name of freedom of speech, right?The algorithms are what makes people never have their feelings hurt you nincompoop. A lack of algorithms means all people see the same posts.
With algorithms, people only see the posts that agree with them.
You have no rights excerpt those given to you by the nation sate you reside in.
I don’t like it but that is the reality.
mad
