Singapore Seeks Social Media 'Corrections' In Proposed Fake News Law (reuters.com) 42
A new bill sent to Singapore's parliament on Monday will require social media to carry warnings on posts it deems false and remove comments against "public interest." "The move came two days after Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg said governments should play a more active role in regulating the online platform," reports Reuters. From the report: Singapore, which has been run by the same political party since independence from Britain more than 50 years ago, says it is vulnerable to fake news because of its position as a global financial hub, its mixed ethnic and religious population and widespread internet access. The new bill proposes that the government get online platforms to publish warnings or "corrections
alongside posts carrying false information, without removing them.
This would be the "primary response" to counter falsehoods online, the Law Ministry said. "That way, in a sense, people can read whatever they want and make up their minds. That is our preference," Law Minister K. Shanmugam told reporters on Monday. "This legislation deals with false statements of facts. It doesn't deal with opinions, it doesn't deal with viewpoints. You can have whatever viewpoints however reasonable or unreasonable." Under the proposals, which must be approved by parliament, criminal sanctions will only be imposed if the falsehoods are spread by "malicious actors" who "undermine society," the ministry said, without elaborating. It added that it would cut off an online site's "ability to profit," without shutting it down, if the site had published three falsehoods that were "against the public interest" over the previous six months. It did not say how it would block a site's profit streams.
This would be the "primary response" to counter falsehoods online, the Law Ministry said. "That way, in a sense, people can read whatever they want and make up their minds. That is our preference," Law Minister K. Shanmugam told reporters on Monday. "This legislation deals with false statements of facts. It doesn't deal with opinions, it doesn't deal with viewpoints. You can have whatever viewpoints however reasonable or unreasonable." Under the proposals, which must be approved by parliament, criminal sanctions will only be imposed if the falsehoods are spread by "malicious actors" who "undermine society," the ministry said, without elaborating. It added that it would cut off an online site's "ability to profit," without shutting it down, if the site had published three falsehoods that were "against the public interest" over the previous six months. It did not say how it would block a site's profit streams.
Re: (Score:2)
This will just make some people trust their government less.
This is nothing new for Singapore. They have always been authoritarian with heavy-handed censorship, backed up by a pliant judiciary.
They are also a capitalist democracy, and the authoritarians have stayed in power by delivering decades of strong economic growth and prosperity.
The Ministry of Trurth has determined this post is (Score:2)
hazardous to the continued existence of the Ministry of Truth.
Please delete and apologize.
Speakers corner (Score:1)
This is the same country that has a 15x15 meter area designated for protesting (with a permit, that is).
Obviously, this is on par for the course.
April 1 (Score:2)
Sudden outbreak of common sense? (Score:4, Insightful)
Why is this not more common?
Leaving the original post displayed, along with some information pointing out why it might not be true, sounds like a far better solution than simply censoring things.
US politicians: Let's please be like Singapore in this case rather than like China. Thanks.
Singapore has changed; race not the problem it was (Score:2)
Early in Singapore's history there were real racial tensions between Chinese, Indian and Malay peoples. And those could indeed be fanned by fake news.
But today, it is a fully western country, with a better education and a much better general standard of living for the bottom 1/2 than the USA (if you ignore that it is a city-state and has no wilderness).
So this is nonsense. Just censorship. Which has no place in modern Singapore.
(The left was dumb to highlight "fake news". The actual fake news had little
Re: (Score:2)
Fake news is not benign. It can be dangerous. Consider that Pizzagate [wikipedia.org] agitated some guy into taking a rifle into the restaurant that was the supposed site of human trafficking.
Fake news is written by fake reporters. It is not news with mistakes, or even news with a bias. It is not intended to inform. It is intended to cause fear, anger, or confusion -- the kinds of emotions that can lead people to make poor choices at best, or carry out violence at worst. Both the left and the right should strive to debunk
Re: (Score:2)
And yet...
We've managed to get by for centuries without the Ministry of Truth(tm) "verifying" what is and isn't "news". We really don't want to go down the path of "government approved" news.
If for no other reason because, sooner or later, the guys making the decisions about what is "fake news" won't agree with "our side" (no matter which side is "our side")....
And do we really want to give "those people" (being the guys who don't agree with us) the power to
Better article (Score:2)
Here's an article from a Singaporean newspaper: Parliament: Law against online falsehoods will not stifle free speech, say ministers [straitstimes.com].
Re: (Score:2)
The Straits Times is government controlled. No different that the USSR's Pravda or China's People's Daily.
Re: (Score:2)
So you're saying you know absolutely nothing of Singapore.
What a surprise (Score:3)
"Singapore........says it is vulnerable to fake news because of its......mixed ethnic and religious population...."
Funny how "diversity" always results in a police state.
Re: What a surprise (Score:2)
Singapore is definitely a police state. But it is at least a clean and prosperous police state.
Re: (Score:1)
Am a Singapore born Singaporean.
My ancestors are from India.
SIngapore still has some racial tension underneath the thin layer of civility.
And racism is still alive and well. Example, although legally you can't discriminate by race when it comes to employment, even positions which don't face customers are often advertised as having a requirement for a Mandarin speaker. Although most locals in Singapore have an understanding of Mandarin, Malay and Tamil (official languages of Singapore, including English), ge
Remember kids.... (Score:1)