“It’s not just a problem here in Australia,it’s a problem all around the world,” Mr Morrison said.
The Osaka statement saw all G20 leaders call for action by the social media companies to take down violent terrorist content after the Christchurch massacre that year,when an Australian gunman killed 51 and wounded 49 while streaming the murders on Facebook.
The Osaka statement was proposed by Australia and followed a call for change from New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. It was agreed by consensus and backed with remarks from Japan,France,Canada,Germany and the European Union.
Mr Morrison will argue at the G20 that the previous statement aimed to stop the platforms being used as a weapon by terrorists but had not stopped them being used to inflict other forms of damage.
“They’re still being used as a weapon right now,destroying the mental health of our young people,destroying lives,and it’s just not on in this country,” he said.
“I’ll be raising that with other G20 leaders when I’m there because we have to go further than we are now.”
Labor communications spokeswoman Michelle Rowland said questions around platform liability and anonymity online were major pieces of work that required careful examination,as she hit out at the government’s reluctance to rein in backbench MPs who have spread COVID-19 misinformation.
“If Scott Morrison is worried about fake profiles or harmful misinformation,then he could start by pulling his own Senators and Members into line,” she said.
“In balancing freedom of expression with harmful speech,he needs to be consistent.”
Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce has repeatedly rejected calls for him to demand Queensland MP George Christensen stop contradicting public health advice on COVID-19 measures and spruiking the unproven treatment ivermectin. Independent MP Craig Kelly quit the Liberal Party earlier this year after growing calls for the government to publicly reject his vaccine scepticism and anti-lockdown stance.
Greens communications spokeswoman Sarah Hanson-Young said governments had allowed big tech to grow to become essential services without adequate regulation.
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“They need to be reined in but we need to see what the government is proposing to do that,” she said.
“They’re an essential service yet nowhere else in society can you get away with such secrecy around operations and algorithms,free of regulation.”
A spokeswoman for Twitter said anonymity or pseudonymity was not a shield against breaches of its terms of service,saying “there is no room for abuse,and harassment on our platform,and we make ongoing investments in this area to keep our users safe.”
“As we continue engaging with governments around the world on these key issues,we would also like to highlight that trust is critical – ensuring people’s personal information is protected and respected,alongside transparency and procedural fairness,are foundations of a free,global and open Internet,” the spokeswoman said.
Facebook declined to comment.
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