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Balancing Free Expression and
Restrictions on Fake News

Most Americans do not want the government to limit free ex-
pression, but they would support action by technology com-
panies to restrict false information. This is the nding of a 2018 Pew Research
Center survey. When asked whether the US government should restrict false
information online even if it limits free expression, 58 percent (nearly six in ten
Americans) said freedom of information should be protected even if it means
the presence of fake news online. On the other hand, when asked whether
tech companies should take steps to restrict false information even if it limits
free expression, 56 percent said they would support those restrictions.
The trade-off between more government restrictions on free expres-
sion and less false information online lacks support from nearly all demo-
graphic groups, but this position is strongest among younger Americans.
“At least six-in-ten adults ages 18 to 29 (65%) and 30 to 49 (62%) prefer no
government restrictions on information ow compared with 53% of those
50 to 64 and 48% of those 65 and older,” the Pew report states. People in
the younger age groups are also less supportive than older Americans of
restrictions being imposed by tech companies.

Quoted in Amy Mitchell et al., “Americans Favor Protecting Information Freedoms over Government
Steps to Restrict False News Online,” Pew Research Center, April 19, 2018. www.journalism.org.

whether content is manipulative and, if so, remove it from social
media. The law also enables authorities to block sites that publish
fake and manipulative content. Political candidates can also sue for
the removal of contested news reports during an election period.
The law will also require social media platforms such as Facebook
and Twitter to publish who purchased sponsored content or cam-
paign ads and how much they paid. “I am delighted by Parliament’s
passing of a balanced and effective text that rises to the magnitude
of the issue, a text that will be a precious tool for better protecting
our democracy,” says Culture Minister Françoise Nyssen.
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The German parliament has also taken action. In 2017 it ad-
opted a law that bans the posting of false information and hate
speech on social media. Under the law, social media platforms

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