Government Regulations on Social Media

The Pakistan government has secretly passed strict social media regulations.

© Reuters/Caren Firouz

Social media is a platform that has many pros and cons, yet the real question is how does the government regulate such a multi-populated platform? Social media in the eyes of the government is a game changer, where one can interact directly with the political aspects, engage in political parties, and overall promote the government itself. When compared amongst professionals , social media relies on user-generated content, which is any content produced by end users or the general public. Behind these universal platforms is the government, in which any data produced or transmitted is looked over and approved to make sure there are no data wrong doings within the general public.

Samples from tech-giant Facebook's ads targeted towards users for the proposal of the "Honest Ad Act." © Engadget

A Two-Sided Argument

There are 2 sides to the discussion over the authority held by the government over social media apps. One side is that if the government takes full control over each social media aspect, it will result in the plummet of social interaction to these platforms as a whole. By the government having an upper hand regulating from behind the scenes, it will indirectly restrict the public's right of speech or ultimately the first amendment. Overall it can be argued that the legislation and the government controlling social media would be a backward step in our battle for freedom and the expression of individuality.

Upholding such power can also lead the government itself in a few sticky situations. Whereas many people tend to spread “fake news” to falsely scare the government or general public. This act plays a trick on the legislation into thinking it's a real situation in need of attention right then and there yet it's fake. Preventing the many harms caused by “fake news” results in the law’s hands being tied because such situations lie well beyond the jurisdiction of the government .

On the other hand this controlled regulation leads to many positive outcomes. Many users misuse their freedom of speech with their expression that incites abuse, spread hatred and infringe on others' privacy. In addition to those factors, social media platforms can also be used to foster terriorism. Strict government regulations help prevent such situations coming into action.

Following U.S President Trump's decision to ban TikTok arose political tension among social media. © Angela Lang/CNET

TikTok

TikTok is a social entertainment platform where worldwide creators make comedic, informational, creative,etc. videos. The platform “TikTok” was identified as an immediate danger to national security since the app is based in Beijing. The platform holds the high risk of the american user data ultimately winding up in the hands of the Chinese government. In response to the subject, owners of “TikTok” say that the US government has produced ‘no evidence that the TikTok source code has ever been compromised, shared or used for atrocious purposes.

The news of the banning caused a havoc in the public protesting that the app proposes no such threat. As a result of the U.S undermining a lack of evidence on the “threats” Tik Tok showed, the general public won and TikTok was not banned in the United States yet that's not how it is in Pakistan. The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority decided to give the ban a green light because it asserts against immoral and indecent programming from different policy areas.

One professional finds TikTok to be an interesting situation. The app's growth within Pakistan's lower middle-class, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, has increased drastically. When analyzed, the voices of poor Pakistanis who were not well-represented on other social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter rushed to make any entry on TikTok. With the app being banned, this stole the one last hope many Pakistanis had to voice their opinions and creativity.

© GIPHY

How to Help

As a user of these universal social media platforms, first it's important to know and learn about what regulations are already in place. With this knowledge one can be cautious of what they post,share, or comment on. If you are using these platforms to promote your own company make sure you stay within the professional aspect of information sharing that way you can uphold the reputation of your employees and workspace.

In the eyes of young users, a professional advocates that every young users platform should be looked over and monitored by a parent or guardian. By doing this you can ensure no unnecessary information is leaked or your child doesn't do any wrong doings adding on to the evidence to ban that specific platform.

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Works Cited

Social Media Laws and Regulations: What You Need to Know. 21 Oct. 2019, www.getproofusa.com/social-media-laws-and-regulations/.

Wang, Selina. “Analysis: Pakistan's TikTok Ban Is about Censorship, Not China.” CNN, Cable News Network, 13 Oct. 2020, www.cnn.com/2020/10/13/tech/tiktok-pakistan-ban-intl-hnk/index.html.

“US Court Agrees to Expedite Government TikTok App Store Ban Appeal.” South China Morning Post, 15 Oct. 2020, www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/3105581/us-court-agrees-expedite-government-tiktok-app-store-ban-appeal-us.

“Why the Government Should Not Regulate Content Moderation of Social Media.” Cato Institute, 25 Sept. 2020, www.cato.org/publications/policy-analysis/why-government-should-not-regulate-content-moderation-social-media.

Fung, Brian. “Judge Rules TikTok Can Avoid a Ban in the US, for Now.” CNN, Cable News Network, 28 Sept. 2020, www.cnn.com/2020/09/27/tech/tiktok-ban-judge/index.html.

Social Media in Government: Benefits, Challenges, and How it's Used. (2020, July 28). Retrieved October 16, 2020, from https://blog.hootsuite.com/social-media-government/

School, E. (2020, February 10). Should Social Media Platforms Be Regulated? Retrieved October 16, 2020, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/esade/2020/02/10/should-social-media-platforms-be-regulated/