Australia’s Misinformation Bill Faces Upper House Battle as Elon Musk, Senators Cite Free Speech Threat

A photo of logos of major social media platforms and companies taken in Canberra, Australia, on Nov. 7, 2024. AAP Image/Lukas Coch

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.

Similarly, David Pocock, the independent senator for the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), said he would not back the bill in its “current form.”

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.

This legislation (pdf) gives the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA)—the country’s media watchdog—the power to fine social media companies for online content that is verifiably “false, misleading, deceptive, or causes serious harm.”

The bill defines “serious harm” as threats to public health, election integrity, critical infrastructure, and other crucial areas in Australian society.

It exempts professional news content product my media outlets, satire, or content for religious, academic, artistic, or scientific purposes.

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.

Right-leaning One Nation Senators Malcolm Roberts and Pauline Hanson, United Australia Party Senator Ralph Babet and People First Senator Gerrard Rennick have all expressed concerns with the bill and will likely oppose it.

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.”

“Freedom of speech and the freedom to protest are critical parts of our democracy,” he said.

“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.”

He also explained truth is really hard to define, and often changes over time and expressed concerns platforms could end up unintentionally censoring people.

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.

“The government’s misinformation bill is a dangerous piece of legislation that will have a chilling impact on free speech and give power to tech companies and regulators to determine what is and is not acceptable for Australians to say online,” he said.

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.

“This bill will increase the transparency and accountability of the actions of digital platforms in relation to seriously harmful misinformation and disinformation, while balancing the freedom of expression that is at the very core of our democracy,” she argued in Parliament on Nov. 7.

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.

“The Albanese government wants the power to censor anything everywhere. Unvarnished totalitarianism,” he said on X.

“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?”