Online Disinformation and Political Discourse: Applying a Human Rights Framework Research paper sysadmin 5 November 2019

Although some digital platforms now have an impact on more people’s lives than does any one state authority, the international community has been slow to hold to account these platforms’ activities by reference to human rights law.

This paper examines how human rights frameworks should guide digital technology.

Summary

• Online political campaigning techniques are distorting our democratic political processes. These techniques include the creation of disinformation and divisive content; exploiting digital platforms’ algorithms, and using bots, cyborgs and fake accounts to distribute this content; maximizing influence through harnessing emotional responses such as anger and disgust; and micro-targeting on the basis of collated personal data and sophisticated psychological profiling techniques. Some state authorities distort political debate by restricting, filtering, shutting down or censoring online networks.
• Such techniques have outpaced regulatory initiatives and, save in egregious cases such as shutdown of networks, there is no international consensus on how they should be tackled. Digital platforms, driven by their commercial impetus to encourage users to spend as long as possible on them and to attract advertisers, may provide an environment conducive to manipulative techniques.
• International human rights law, with its careful calibrations designed to protect individuals from abuse of power by authority, provides a normative framework that should underpin responses to online disinformation and distortion of political debate. Contrary to popular view, it does not entail that there should be no control of the online environment; rather, controls should balance the interests at stake appropriately.
• The rights to freedom of thought and opinion are critical to delimiting the appropriate boundary between legitimate influence and illegitimate manipulation. When digital platforms exploit decision-making biases in prioritizing bad news and divisive, emotion-arousing information, they may be breaching these rights. States and digital platforms should consider structural changes to digital platforms to ensure that methods of online political discourse respect personal agency and prevent the use of sophisticated manipulative techniques.
• The right to privacy includes a right to choose not to divulge your personal information, and a right to opt out of trading in and profiling on the basis of your personal data. Current practices in collecting, trading and using extensive personal data to ‘micro-target’ voters without their knowledge are not consistent with this right. Significant changes are needed.
• Data protection laws should be implemented robustly, and should not legitimate extensive harvesting of personal data on the basis of either notional ‘consent’ or the data handler’s commercial interests. The right to privacy should be embedded in technological design (such as by allowing the user to access all information held on them at the click of a button); and political parties should be transparent in their collection and use of personal data, and in their targeting of messages. Arguably, the value of personal data should be shared with the individuals from whom it derives.
• The rules on the boundaries of permissible content online should be set by states, and should be consistent with the right to freedom of expression. Digital platforms have had to rapidly develop policies on retention or removal of content, but those policies do not necessarily reflect the right to freedom of expression, and platforms are currently not well placed to take account of the public interest. Platforms should be far more transparent in their content regulation policies and decision-making, and should develop frameworks enabling efficient, fair, consistent internal complaints and content monitoring processes. Expertise on international human rights law should be integral to their systems.
• The right to participate in public affairs and to vote includes the right to engage in public debate. States and digital platforms should ensure an environment in which all can participate in debate online and are not discouraged from standing for election, from participating or from voting by online threats or abuse.

Aaron Nola established himself as one of the best pitchers in baseball in 2018. The Phillies ensured on Wednesday that he will be the ace in their rotation for possibly the next five seasons.

Phillies president Andy MacPhail opened a 28-minute press conference on Friday afternoon at Spectrum Field with facts and figures about investments the organization made the past few seasons as the team wallowed at the bottom of the National League. Then MacPhail talked a lot about Bryce Harper and Manny Machado as well as manager Gabe Kapler.

The 2019 MLB season feels so close now. Spring Training has begun. Players are taking the field. So it's time to rank the best of the best.

Can diplomacy advance human rights? 25 April 2023 — 4:00PM TO 5:00PM Anonymous (not verified) 7 March 2023 Chatham House and Online

How is diplomacy contributing to advancing human rights through the multilateral system?

The international human rights system has come under significant pressure in recent years. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the US-China rivalry have created difficult political pressures, while major global challenges including climate change and global inequality demand answers. Effective diplomacy on human rights has become increasingly difficult, with incentives stacked against bold action.

The relationship between diplomacy and human rights is an uneasy one. Diplomacy is an art of negotiation, persuasion and compromise. Human rights are tightly defined and universal. The relationship between the two may seem paradoxical, but in the context of an unstable world order, it has never been more important.

In the 75th anniversary year of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, this discussion will explore the critical role of diplomacy in advancing human rights in the future.

• What are the critical human rights challenges today? What is the role of diplomacy in addressing them?

• What is the impact of intensifying competition between the US and China on the human rights system?

• Is there an opening for more leadership emerging from the Global South?

• What is the future of the human rights system in the context of this polarized world?

As with all member events, questions from the audience drive the conversation.

An employment judge has cleared the way for Farah Jameel, a former chair of the BMA’s General Practitioners Committee for England (GPCE), to go ahead with claims of discrimination and unfair dismissal against the association over her removal from the post during maternity leave.Jameel, who was elected the first female chair in November 2021, was put on temporary suspension in 2022 after complaints by BMA staff. The BMA told her in August 2023 that her contract was being terminated.The contract described her as a contractor providing consultancy services rather than an employee. But in a preliminary ruling the employment judge Natasha Joffe has held that Jameel was in reality an office holder and an employee, opening the way for her claims to proceed to a full hearing by an employment tribunal.The GPCE passed a vote of no confidence in Jameel in July 2023, as a means of electing a new...

Undercurrents: Europe's far-right educational institutions Audio bhorton.drupal 8 October 2021

In Hungary, France and Spain, new political movements from the far-right are attempting to reshape their education systems.

Under the supportive eye of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, the recently established National University of Public Service seeks to embed nationalist illiberal values in a new generation of Hungarian students. Meanwhile in France and Spain, far-right public figure Marion Maréchal has turned away from the electoral politics of the Front Nationale to set up a new conservative research institute, ISSEP.

Both of these developments represent a challenge to the liberal values which underpin the existing international order. To find out more, Ben spoke with Professor Dorit Geva and Dr Felipe Santos, whose recent article in International Affairs considers the implications of this illiberal educational turn. 

The rapid shift to tech-driven, remote learning this spring has infused more technology into K-12 education, but AI tools still remain on the fringe.

The law passed after parent groups lobbied for it and will require schools to provide 20 consecutive minutes of recess daily for students in kindergarten through 6th grade.

Schools and staff confront a welter of employment laws and regulations when it comes to on-site work under the pandemic.

A measure now before Virginia's governor would let teachers bargain with local boards over wages and working conditions if a local board authorizes it.

Dez-Ann Romain, a Brooklyn principal, is believed to be the first full-time, front-line educator to die from COVID-19.

Activists expect to see renewed guidance, more active enforcement, and better data collection coming from the Education Department’s civil rights office.

Worried that far too many students have weak reading skills, states are passing new laws that require aspiring teachers—and, increasingly, teachers who are already in the classroom—to master reading instruction that’s solidly grounded in research.

Worried that far too many students have weak reading skills, states are passing new laws that require aspiring teachers—and, increasingly, teachers who are already in the classroom—to master reading instruction that’s solidly grounded in research.

The court revived a lawsuit claiming that Mississippi's lack of a "uniform" education system violates the 1868 federal law that readmitted the state to the Union.

Yang Hu
Feb 24, 2021; 41:1699-1715
BehavioralSystemsCognitive

This year’s #WorldFoodDay theme, “Right to foods for a better life and a better future” spotlights the importance of diversity, nutrition, affordability, accessibility as well as the safety and [...]

Henry Ford was a genius who virtually created the automobile industry as we know it. But what's less lauded was his talent for publicity—and his ability to partner with other pioneers such as Ohio's Harvey Firestone.

See the process involved when a massive specimen arrives at the Smithsonian

Cellist Yo-Yo Ma talks with the founder of the Girls Computing League about the promise of her generation

Fannie Lou Hamer, a voting rights activist, suffered unspeakable violence and intimidation at the hands of white supremacists and police. Her response: to elevate her cause by launching a long-shot campaign for the U.S. Senate

From gender roles to etiquette to fashion, step back in time to learn more about the real lives of the Regency women who inspired 'Bridgerton.' --- To read more about the Regency era - and 'Bridgerton' - check out these articles from Smithsonian Magazine: What 'Bridgerton' Gets Wrong About Corsets: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/what-bridgerton-gets-wrong-about-corsets-180976691/ The Real History Behind 'Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story' https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-real-history-behind-queen-charlotte-a-bridgerton-story-180982130/ Digital Editorial Director: Brian Wolly Supervising Producer & Scriptwriter: Michelle Mehrtens Producer: Nicki Marko Video Editor: Sierra Theobald

Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS should be visible to the naked eye as it passes Earth on its way out of our solar system

The Gestapo seized the Impressionist painting from storage after its owners fled from their home in Vienna. Now, the piece has been returned to their granddaughters

A new study sheds light on the muscular, dexterous appendage, suggesting trunk wrinkles are more important than many people realize

This week's supermoon is closer to Earth than any other in 2024

While the Orionids, peaking early Sunday and Monday, might be hard to see because of the waning gibbous moon, these zippy meteors can produce long "trains" that last up to several minutes

A researcher studying the rise of extremism in Atlantic Canada warns Ku Klux Klan Halloween costumes are just one example of an insidious effort by far-right groups to normalize hateful attitudes.

The union representing dockworkers in Montreal says Canada's labour minister forcing its members back to work at ports in Montreal and Quebec City marks a "dark day for workers' rights."

In the Jim Crow South, activists became martyrs at the hands of white racists, all for the just cause of using the vote to fight for equality and freedom

Tens of thousands of Poles including nationalist opposition chiefs walked through Warsaw on Monday in an annual Independence Day event held by the far right, some shooting red flares and carrying anti-EU, anti-Ukraine and white supremacist banners.

When the British public responded to OM’s Just Christmas appeal, OM Montenegro received funds to help families, just at the right time.

The lowest prices of the year are here well before Black Friday, with MacBook Air models with 16GB RAM dropping to as low as $749.99.

OM Ireland's Mobilising director shares her thoughts about going "into all the world."

OM workers in a small town in Guatemala help five unregistered children obtain official papers and be able to go to school.

Positive changes in Farah's life came from the skills training she received at OM's sewing centre and her commitment to work hard.

Wynand van Vuuren, client experience partner at King Price insurance, unpacks the rights and responsibilities of a consumer when it comes to insurance.

In the world’s wealthiest country, why is broadband access denied to so many and in such high numbers? Mark Lieberman investigates.

Alexandra Persiko, interim director of global partnerships in Penn State Global, received a Fulbright IEA award in 2024, notable not only because she was one of 14 university administrators across the U.S. to garner such an award this year, but also because of her unique connection to the program through her mother, Alice Ann, who completed a Fulbright student program in Germany in 1957.

In late 2023, the Penn State Law in University Park Civil Rights Appellate Clinic — along with the Employment Law Group, a Washington, D.C.-based boutique litigation firm — filed merits briefs with the Ninth Circuit to appeal the district court’s dismissal of an ADA case. On the basis of this briefing and subsequent oral argument, the Ninth Circuit reversed the lower court’s ruling and remanded the case for trial.

While interest rates have been seen painful hikes, they remain below pandemic levels, and property demand looks in relatively good shape. But one property expert warned against buying a home now.

Twelve Penn State faculty members received Fulbright Scholar Awards for the 2024-25 academic year, according to the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program. An additional four faculty members have been named Fulbright Specialist Award recipients.  

A new civil rights in education initiative, called AdvancED Equity, that focuses on advancing research to inform policy related to civil rights protections in the field of education, was recently established with contributions from Penn State.

An application to suspend development of the solar farm has been rejected, but another seeking more permanent relief is yet to be decided on.

In a new ongoing series, Education Week will interrogate the cognitive science behind how young students acquire foundational reading skills, with a focus on grades K-2, and explore the challenges educators face in teaching kids to read.

The IBM Foundation has launched a website called Teacher Advisor with Watson, which uses artificial intelligence to find high-quality elementary math resources and lessons.

Gopal Shenoy, Vice President of Product at Wiser Solutions, recently shared that he views his vacation time as a way to examine how his team operates during absences and to assess whether he's hired the right people for the job.

Archana's son also joined her on the trip

Everyone loves thick, shiny hair, right? But let's be real - these days, hair fall and thinning have become quite common.