Two independent senators will not support the Australian Labor government’s misinformation and disinformation bill, as it makes it way through the federal upper house.
Tasmanian Senator Tammy Tyrrell, said she was responding to thousands of constituent concerns with her opposition to the bill, which is aimed at curtailing the spread of false information on social media platforms.
She questioned the bill’s approach to defining “truth” and warns of a “slippery slope” effect.
Bill Overview and Current Support
The Communications Legislation Amendment (Combatting Misinformation and Disinformation) Bill 2024 passed the House of Representatives on Nov. 8 with the support of Labor and teal MPs.The bill defines “serious harm” as threats to public health, election integrity, critical infrastructure, and other crucial areas in Australian society.
All Eyes on the Senate
The bill, set for a showdown in the Senate before the end of the year, will need the support of the Greens and a handful of independents, to pass.Those under the spotlight include the Jacqui Lambie Network (JLN) Senator Jacqui Lambie, left-leaning independents Lidia Thorpe and Fatima Payman, and former moderate Liberal David Van.
What Opposing Senators Have to Say
In a post to X, Independent Senator for Tasmania Tyrrell outlined her concerns with handing power to social media companies to decide what is true.“One person’s truth can be another person’s lie, and both sides have the evidence to back up their arguments. What is and isn’t truth or the facts isn’t always clear cut—I mean, have you met politicians?” she wrote.
“The definitions of misinformation and disinformation are vague and I’m not convinced this bill can actually be enforced.”
Meanwhile, ACT Senator David Pocock explained that he would be opposing the bill, “because as it stands, I don’t believe it takes the right approach to dealing with misinformation.”
“In Australia, we don’t have an overarching Human Rights Act that entrenches these rights, so we need to tread very carefully whenever we make changes that may impact on them.”
Pocock added that there was “no doubt” that mis- and- disinformation was causing harm, but added, “people are also entitled to their opinion, whatever it may be.”
Debate Intensifies Over Free Speech and Safety
Meanwhile, Liberal Senator Dave Sharma said he will be spending the next three weeks, along with his colleagues, fighting against the bill.Sharma explained he had heard “alarming” information during the last day of Senate hearings into the bill, including concerns that the legislation was inconsistent with “fundamental human rights.”
Labor’s Minister for Communications Michelle Rowland however, argued that false information online posed a significant threat to the safety and wellbeing of Australians, along with the nation’s democracy.
US Figures Speak Out
Even Elon Musk, the owner of social media platform X, weighed in on Nov. 11, stating, “They want legacy media to continue to deceive the people of Australia, just as they were deceived about Donald Trump.”American author and journalist Michael Shellenberger also highlighted concerns with the bill.
“Why is his government pursuing such a grossly illiberal and immoral attack on free speech? Why is he seeking to undermine the incoming Trump administration?”