Regulating Social Media Platforms: A Comparative Policy Analysis

Abstract

High-profile scandals related to electoral interference, fake news and misinformation, violations of data privacy, and suppression of political activism by anti-democratic regimes have cast a cloud over the social media industry in recent years. The question is not if, but when and how, reform will be undertaken and with what consequences. Against this backdrop, the purpose of this article is to conduct a comparative analysis of competing alternatives for social media platform regulation. Its focus is international, encompassing not only proposals advanced by different groups within the United States, but also selected major developments abroad. The goal of such a comparison is to improve understanding of limited as well as more comprehensive strategies of intervention while evaluating their appeal for addressing the controversy that surrounds the social media industry based on policy effectiveness and other technical and normative criteria.