But what is a German law doing in the war in Ukraine? Since the start of the conflict, many Twitter users have had their tweets about the Russian invasion flagged under a German social media law. One of Kevin Rothrock’s tweets, editor-in-chief of the English version of Meduza, an independent news site on Russia, published on March 10, was thus targeted: the journalist was ironic about an accusation by the Russian Ministry of Defense concerning coronavirus samples.
A tweet from Bellingcat investigative site reporter Nick Waters also been reported under this law. Twitter has determined that these two messages do not violate German law, they are both still online. Messages from the pro-Russian camp have also is about of reporting.
Is this a new episode in the communication offensive that is being played out on social networks? This law, known by the acronym NetzDG, orders platforms, such as Twitter or Facebook, to remove content within 24 hours if it is an “obvious violation” of the law or within a week if the content requests more examination time, explain to 20 minutes Matthias C. Kettemann, researcher specializing in Internet regulation. “The idea [de cette loi], is to fight more effectively against crimes on social networks, such as defamation, incitement to hatred, certain insults, or neo-Nazi activities. »
“The NetzDG does not apply to people outside of Germany”
Only Internet users in Germany can report content on Twitter or Facebook using this law. Besides, there is no no twitter account needed to make a report. So why are internet users reporting content about the war in Ukraine published outside of Germany? “The NetzDG does not apply to people outside of Germany,” recalls the professor at the Austrian University of Innsbruck. If a tweet has to be taken down under this law, it will only be hidden from German internet users.
However, Twitter will also review the message to verify that the content does not violate its guidelines. If he violates it, it “will be completely removed from the platform”, explains Twitter. Is this the real purpose of these reports?
Within the timeline of the article, Twitter was unable to give us the number of tweets that have been flagged since the war began. The platform is however legally obliged to publish twice a year a report on the application of the law. The next report is due out this summer.