Unelected private moderation groups policing online speech? Sarah Knafo, an MEP, flags this as a brewing storm around freedom of expression and media diversity, especially in France. The focus is on how independent and accountable these private gatekeepers are, with broadcasters and app users feeling the tremors.
This response by Executive Vice-President Virkkunen on behalf of the European Commission was prompted by Knafo's written parliamentary question submitted in October 2025. She highlighted incidents including the arrest of Telegram’s Pavel Durov, shutdown of a pluralistic French TV channel, C8, and the emergence of politically charged digital policing coalitions.
The Commission references existing legislation, notably the Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD) and the Digital Services Act (DSA). These laws enshrine media and digital regulator independence from political and private influence and assign final judgment on content legality strictly to courts. The DSA mandates that online platforms provide reporting tools but retain ultimate control over content decisions, barring them from blanket monitoring of user material. It also installs redress pathways enabling reinstatement of removed posts, reflecting concrete compliance and transparency mechanisms.
This stance reinforces EU legal boundaries around digital regulation, emphasizing judicial oversight and the independence of national and EU bodies. Thus, the Commission’s position seeks to uphold media plurality and free expression while balancing regulation with platform autonomy and legal safeguards.
Stakeholders sharply affected include national regulators (obliged to act impartially), digital platforms (gained both responsibilities and protections under the DSA), free speech advocates (concerned about private censorship and procedural fairness), and European consumers/users who rely on pluralistic and uncensored information sources.
Expect a formal reply within weeks reinforcing these policy lines to clarify the EU’s approach in this contentious digital governance arena.