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Google gives UK government “super flagger” status for YouTube?

computing.co.uk

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Re: Google gives UK government “super flagger” status for YouTube?

#2

Post by Havoc »

I wouldn't mind that in principle, but I think there should be way more controls in place. e.g. Something like "all take down requests get published publicly 30 days later". Naturally the gov wouldn't go for that, but that is how I think it should be.

Re: Google gives UK government “super flagger” status for YouTube?

#3

Post by mtgx »

Very disappointed in Google over this. They are allowing them to remove stuff that isn't even illegal in UK. Code is law, indeed. Google is clearly doing this because the UK government is pressuring them in some extra-legal way, but I'm still very disappointed nonetheless. Google created the infrastructure to allow this sort of censorship of Youtube, so they are very much complicit to it (not to mention for the very fact that they gave them such access in the first place).

Re: Google gives UK government “super flagger” status for YouTube?

#4

Post by guylhem »

What if I don't agree with the UK government views on say freedom of speech?

And why the UK government? What about giving that same power to the government of Afghanistan for example?

From a utilitarian perspective, they could use that "superflagger status" to prevent the spread of videos that have lead to violence in the past.

One simple example : http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/google-remove-riot-spa...

However, from a freedom of speech perspective all that is very very wrong. If watching a video cause you urges to start rioting and harm people, maybe it's not the video that's the problem.

Re: Google gives UK government “super flagger” status for YouTube?

#7

Post by r00fus »

"Google told the FT that while the Home Office had been given these new permissions, the company still retained the right to decide whether they ought to be removed or not. Google's own user policy on YouTube forbids content that incites hatred or violence."

So what does this really mean? So Google ultimately decides, but the UK can "recommend"? Without seeing the process in practice, it's hard to say if this actually changes anything.

Re: Google gives UK government “super flagger” status for YouTube?

#8

Post by lclarkmichalek »

guylhem wrote: post #4

What if I don't agree with the UK government views on say freedom of speech? And why the UK government? What about giving that same power to the government of Afghanistan for example? From a utilitarian perspective, they could use that "superflagger status" to prevent the spread of videos that have lead to violence in the past. One simple example : http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/google-remove-riot-spa... Howev…

No, the video is the problem. People's words, be they transferred by video, television, or just print, have inspired people to do things ranging from the horrendous to the amazing. Speech is not innocent, which is all the more reason to keep it free.

Re: Google gives UK government “super flagger” status for YouTube?

#9

Post by devx »

> Brokenshire suggested that the government was also pushing for a "code of conduct" for internet service providers and other internet companies, which might include changing search algorithms to downgrade "unsavoury" content in internet searches.

Google, the search engine, will die by the end of this decade. Mark my words. This is the beginning of the end. This is the moment in history when Google the search engine, started to serve not its users, but the governments.

As soon as there's a "good enough" P2P censorship-free and privacy-friendly alternative to Google, millions of people will move to it. Such a search engine seems pretty unlikely today, but it will come, and when it does, Google won't be able to stop it, because to be like it, it will mean reverting all of these shitty policies they're engaging in right now, and it will be too late to do that.

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