How OFCOM Kneecapped Bitchute Using EU Law
Page 20 “Duty to promote media literacy”- OFCOM’s remit seems to involve developing a therapeutic relationship with the public
Page 26” Duty to publish and take account of research” - power to filter and keep research confidential if:
“publication of that matter would or might, in OFCOM's opinion, seriously and prejudicially affect the interests of that body.”
Page 42 “Training and equality of opportunity” - here we can see the 2003 act getting amendments from the Conservative governments 2010 equality act
Page 1070 “Promotion of equal opportunities and training” - continued working in of 2010 equality act for the purpose of policing licence holders/broadcasters
Inclusion of Digital Economy Act 2017 and soon to be Online Safety Bill gives us our link to Bitchute example.
https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0020/47630/phoneability.pdf
2nd paragraph in here from 2013 is telling in just how it’s remit changed from 2003.
3rd paragraph “Equality within, Equality without”.
2002 Standards Document:
https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0019/36118/news_current_affairs.pdf
“Terrorism act 2000” section is interesting alone when we think of who it’s is covered in media now 20 years on.
Sections on “Taste, Decency and offence” & “Religious and spiritual matters” read like relics from a bygone age.
Casual name drop of DA “Defence Advisory Notices (DA Notices)”
Dedicated OFCOM vertical for DEI, touted as “diversity hub” in the document below but link is broken.
https://www.ofcom.org.uk/tv-radio-and-on-demand/information-for-industry/guidance/diversity
2022 document on DEI standards - an extension of the “Promotion of equal opportunities and training” section on licence holders and how they can best struggle session their workforce to produce diverse programming. Both sections of the 2003 communication act are listed as legal obligations at the bottom of the report.
https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0020/147710/diversity-in-broadcasting-guidance.pdf
“Broadcasters should aim to embed diversity and inclusion at the centre of their business. This means empowering all staff to engage with EDI…”
2021-2022 report on the application of above standards
Janky page containing responses from BBC et al on how the DEI effort is going
It never ends, LSE “rapid evidence” meta-report requested by OFCOM:
One particularly egregious paragraph on page 20
“A number of articles focus on multiculturalism and the portrayals of different communities in the UK. Tollerton (2015), in an analysis of Merlin (BBC, 2008-2012), draws parallels between the difficulties faced by Uther in his war on magic, and the ways in which arguments about multiculturalism have not changed the reality that Britain is more diverse than it used to be.”
Seems this report gives a look into the make-work aspect of DEI initiatives as people engage no in studies to see how effective DEI measures have been, and the reports in kind give the studies their only citation.
Remit over UK based online video hosting: A case Study
These rules were established to comply with the EU’s “Audiovisual Media Services Directive” in 2020 and already include references to “Legal but Harmful”
https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0021/205167/regulating-vsp-guide.pdf
Video-sharing platforms (VSPs) are a type of online video service which allow users to upload and share videos with the public.
Since 1 November 2020, UK-established VSPs must comply with new rules around protecting users from harmful content.
Rules for now only apply to corporate entities that have subsidiaries in the UK but could apply to any platform with UK employees, deliberately unclear.
(Like previous developments in OFCOM’s remit questions are left unanswered so patchwork solutions with an even bigger remit can be proposed)
You can already make a wide range of complaints against video sharing sites:
https://www.ofcom.org.uk/complaints/complain-about-a-video-sharing-platform
In 2021, BitChute was the first test case for OFCOM’s online policing:
Times: https://archive.is/zOxh8
LSE:https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/medialse/2021/03/30/facing-the-challenge-of-online-hate-the-avmsd-and-the-role-of-regulation/ ← OFCOM cites “complying with EU law on BitChute”
Jewish News: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/video-sharing-site-bitchute-condemned-for-hosting-antisemitic-hate/
“Ofcom said in a report this week: “We consider that the nature of BitChute’s platform raises the risk that users may seek to use it to upload videos containing harmful content.” “
The Report:
https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0032/245579/2022-vsp-report.pdf#page=76
Bitchute was put in OFCOM struggle sessions and told to join “Tech Against Terrorism” if it wanted to stay operational: https://support.bitchute.com/en_US/announcements/membership-of-tech-against-terrorism