Australia Considers Social Media A Palace Of Cowards, Social Media That Contains Hoaxes Will Be Prosecuted

JAKARTA - The Australian government is considering a number of actions that would make social media managers more accountable for defamatory content uploaded to their platforms, Communications Minister Paul Fletcher said on Sunday.

"We expect a firmer stance from the platform," Fletcher said in an interview with state broadcaster ABC.

"For a very long time they have been free from responsibility for the content broadcast on their site," he added, as quoted by ANTARA.

Debate over the country's defamation and defamation laws heated up after Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Thursday called social media a "palace of cowards".

He said social media platforms should be treated as publishers when anonymous defamatory comments are published.

Fletcher said the government was considering these options and the scope of responsibility for platforms like Twitter and Facebook when defamatory material was broadcast on their sites.

Asked if the government would consider legislation that would fine social media platforms for posting defamatory material, Fletcher said the government was reviewing "all aspects" of the action to be taken.

"We will look into that. We will go through the process systematically and carefully. In various ways, we are exploring ideas about which content can be broadcast without violating the law," he said.

Australia's Supreme Court last month ruled that publishers could be held responsible for public comments on online forums, a ruling that pitted Facebook and the mass media against each other.

The ruling also sounds an alarm for all sectors interacting with the public through social media, and prompts the need for revisions to Australia's defamation laws.