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The Private Sector and Content Regulation: The Margin of Permissible Expression

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Global Free Expression - Governing the Boundaries of Internet Content

Part of the book series: Law, Governance and Technology Series ((LGTS,volume 28))

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Abstract

This chapter focuses on private sector models of content regulation. It argues that the legal need and external pressure for content regulation creates a demand for norm-creation within many Internet companies. Particularly, as Internet companies operate in many international jurisdictions with frequently conflicting legal norms, companies are constantly responding to multiple regulatory demands. In order to explore this logic in greater detail, three cases were selected as they demonstrate crucial cases in the evolution of the private sector model of Internet content regulation: AOL, Google & Facebook.

Parts of this chapter have been published as Wagner, Ben. 2013. “Governing Internet Expression: how public and private regulation shape expression governance.” Journal of Information Technology & Politics 10(3) and as Wagner, Ben. 2013. “The Politics of Internet Filtering: The United Kingdom and Germany in a comparative perspective.” Politics 33(4).

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Of course there were other important online communities before AOL, most notably perhaps ‘The Well.’ For further details see Turner, F. (2010). From Counterculture to Cyberculture: Stewart Brand, the Whole Earth Network, and the Rise of Digital Utopianism (p. 354). University of Chicago Press.

  2. 2.

    Unless otherwise stated, all quotes in the following section are from former or current Google employees. For further information on these sources see the list of Additional Sources and Interviews at the end of this book.

  3. 3.

    Figure 5.1 was developed by the author.

  4. 4.

    This is based on interviews with individuals familiar with the matter and Helft (2010).

  5. 5.

    Figure 5.2 was developed by the author.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Internet & Human Rights, European University Viadrina, Frankfurt, Brandenburg, Germany

    Ben Wagner

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Wagner, B. (2016). The Private Sector and Content Regulation: The Margin of Permissible Expression. In: Global Free Expression - Governing the Boundaries of Internet Content. Law, Governance and Technology Series, vol 28. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-33513-1_5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-33513-1_5

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