US brands Australia algorithm opt-out laws 'censorship' — SkimNews
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- US embassy in Canberra filed a rare submission to Australia's draft digital duty of care laws, warning that giving users the ability to opt out of social media algorithms amounts to 'censorship of protected speech' and risks 'viewpoint-based censorship.'
- Australia's proposed framework would impose hefty fines on tech firms that fail to offer algorithm opt-outs as a safeguard against harmful content, with the US demanding Australia clarify how 'harm' and 'risks' would be determined.
- The US submission warned that mandated design features on algorithms could affect what users see, say, and hear 'not just in or from Australia, but globally,' and could force platforms to 'pre-emptively demote' content from independent journalists and minority-viewpoint voices.
- PM Anthony Albanese, speaking in New York during a UN General Assembly visit, pushed back: 'It's not about giving government control... It's about giving people back control over what they receive on their devices.'
- The US also raised concerns that government officials' 'biases and preferences' could disadvantage independent or minority speech, and that the laws might damage Australia's 'reputation as a jurisdiction that enables innovation.'
- President Donald Trump used his own UN speech to play down AI fears, rejecting proposed guardrails and arguing the technology should be renamed 'super intelligence' because 'the use of the word artificial makes it sound fake.'
Why it matters: The US is intervening in another country's domestic platform regulation — a signal of how seriously Washington treats any move that could force American tech firms to alter algorithmic ranking globally. Australia's bill would penalize platforms that don't offer algorithm opt-outs, and the embassy argues this could force 'one-size-fits-all' design changes that reach users beyond Australia's borders, putting the government on a collision course with US tech policy priorities.
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