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submitted 1 year ago by reclipse@lemdro.id to c/world@lemmy.world

Here is a summary of the article:

• French President Emmanuel Macron has said the government should have the power to control social media networks during periods of unrest.

• Macron made the comments during an interview with a French TV station. He was referring to recent protests in France against the government's cost of living policies.

• Macron said during periods of crisis, the government needs the power to "block content that goes against republican values and is clearly creating confusion and putting people's lives at risk."

• Critics say Macron's call for more government control of social media raises concerns about censorship and freedom of speech.

• Opposition politicians accused Macron of attacking fundamental French freedoms and wanting to restrict the free flow of information.

• Macron countered that social media networks are already heavily regulated in France over issues like hate speech and terrorist propaganda. He argued the government needed similar powers during unrest.

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[-] baascus@lemmy.world 27 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

If Macron persists in his autocratic style, I can't help but wonder—given France's historical penchant for the guillotine—what might be metaphorically 'cut off' next.

[-] zefiax@lemmy.world 20 points 1 year ago

How can a modern democracy even consider doing this? I mean I am not fan of most social media but still, this sounds like something you would see in Iran or China.

[-] baascus@lemmy.world 8 points 1 year ago

The implementation of such measures in a democratic society should be viewed as an infringement on freedom of speech and expression, which are fundamental rights in a democracy. The balance between maintaining public safety and upholding civil liberties is a delicate one. Therefore, these measures must be considered as a last resort in extreme situations. The current situation doesn’t appear to be extreme.

[-] reclipse@lemdro.id 2 points 1 year ago

This happens in India on a regular basis.

[-] ConTheLibrarian@lemmy.world 12 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

French Revolution: May 5, 1789 – Nov 9, 1799

Invention of 'Internet': 1969

Turning off the internet/social-media will only throw ~~gas on the fire~~ grease on the guillotine me thinks.

[-] theacharnian@lemmy.ca 11 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

If Orban had said this, it would have been outrage, and rightly so. But liberal darling Macron says it and from luminaries like Verhofstadt there is only crickets...

(I'm using "liberal" in the European sense, not the US sense.)

[-] Mautobu@lemmy.world 8 points 1 year ago

Isn't this sort of policy what the fediverse is meant to distrupt?

[-] reclipse@lemdro.id 4 points 1 year ago

They can block fb, twitter directly. But how will they block every instance on Fediverse?

[-] InverseParallax@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago

China's great firewall has joined the chat.

[-] reclipse@lemdro.id 5 points 1 year ago

China basically operates on whitelisting method.

[-] pitl@lemmy.sdf.org 7 points 1 year ago

Well, that will set a lovely precedent for other "free" democracies... the people are angry at you? Just take their voice! What could go wrong...

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this post was submitted on 05 Jul 2023
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