Can Platforms Cancel Politicians? How States and Platforms Deal with Private Power over Public and Political Actors: an Exploratory Study of 15 Countries

Abstract: In January 2021, a great "deplatforming" took place: Numerous internet platforms suspended the accounts of Donald Trump and his supporters. Private power over public speech is often contested, but the conflicts are magnified when this power is asserted over parties, political candidates and office holders that function as focal points for public debates. While most platforms' terms of use and enforcement systems are global, opinions relating to any preferential treatment of speech by well-known political figures and office holders vary across national political and legal contexts. This study examines the interplay between these national conceptions and global private ordering systems by synthesizing answers to nine questions submitted by more than 30 researchers from 15 countries within the GDHR Network. It provides a first overview of how societies and governments conceive of and react to private power over political actors

Object Details

• Location: Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Frankfurt am Main
• Extent: Online-Ressource, 86 S.
• Language: Englisch
• Notes: Erstveröffentlichung ; begutachtet

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: GDHRNet Working Paper ; Bd. 3

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Politik

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (where): Mannheim
• (who): SSOAR, GESIS – Leibniz-Institut für Sozialwissenschaften e.V.
• (when): 2021
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (where): Hamburg
• (who): Verlag Hans-Bredow-Institut
• (when): 2021
• Contributor: Fertmann, Martin ; Kettemann, Matthias C. ; Leibniz-Institut für Medienforschung | Hans-Bredow-Institut (HBI)

Further information

• DOI: 10.21241/ssoar.75127
• URN: urn:nbn:de:101:1-2023052314273348427357
• Rights: Open Access; Der Zugriff auf das Objekt ist unbeschränkt möglich.
• Last update: 25.03.2025, 1:54 PM CET