On Tuesday 29 October, the European Commission presented a mixed assessment of the code of conduct against disinformation. Concerning the signatories’ self-assessment, it expressed regrets that actions have varied from one actor to another and that no new platforms have joined the initiative. However, it refused to comment on potential legislative drafts, reiterating that this decision belongs to Mrs von der Leyen.
An initiative based on goodwill
The Code of Conduct contains a series of non-binding commitments to combat disinformation in the areas of advertising control and placement, political advertising, service integrity, consumer empowerment and research community empowerment (see EUROPE 12104/1). This is a voluntary initiative, to which five online platforms (Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Twitter and Mozilla) and eight national and European associations from the world of advertising and civil society have subscribed.
“I think we can say that, if we compare the situation to 12 months ago, we are in a more favourable situation”, commented a Commission official, questioned about the self-assessment submitted to the Commission today by the various signatories.
The main problems: access to data
As with every evaluation, the European Commission pointed out certain shortcomings, such as problems in access to data for researchers. It also regrets the lack of information in the reports on the actual impact of the self-regulatory measures taken over the past year and on independent monitoring mechanisms.
Another reason for disappointment is the lack of follow-up by other actors, given that no other platform or actor in the advertising sector has adhered to the code. We are told that Reddit and Snapchat are directly being targeted by this call.
Next steps
In an article in the Guardian, European Security Commissioner, Julian King, went even further by saying that there is a “disconnect” between social media companies’ demands for progress and the “actual experience”. The article also points out that earlier this week, more than 250 Facebook employees sent a letter to Mark Zuckerberg denouncing the platform’s decision to allow politicians to publish ads containing false statements on the platform.
However, this new report is not the last. The European Commission is still waiting to receive four contributions before presenting its overall assessment of the code in early 2020. The four expected contributions are from the European Regulators Group for Audiovisual Media Services (ERGA), a third party organisation selected by the signatories, an independent consultant and a report on the 2019 elections. After that, the von der Leyen Commission will have to decide on the next steps. EUROPE believes that she could take action on political advertising (see EUROPE 12352/7). (Original version in French by Sophie Petitjean)