ABSTRACT

This paper argues that the binary opposition in the treatment of hate speech in the US and Europe hides non-binary preoccupations that reflect different primary fears which do not fall along the same ‘scale’. European liberal democracies fear the consequences of hate speech being left uncensored in the public domain (a WHAT concern) whilst America fears the consequences of content interventions by government (a WHO concern). The paper then proposes that the German Network Enforcement Law of 2017 builds a bridge between American and European speech traditions. NetzDG requires major platforms to moderate content in response to user takedown notices based on legally imposed speech standards. The mechanism of public standards being enforced through private processes is arguably uniquely adept at simultaneously assuaging the primary European fear about the absence of effective speech controls in the public domain and the primary American fear about the presence of governmental censorship.

摘要

本文认为，在美国和欧洲处理仇恨言论的二元对立隐藏了非二元的关注点，这些关注点反映了不同的主要恐惧，它们不属于同一“规模”。欧洲自由民主国家担心仇恨言论在公共领域未经审查的后果（这是什么问题），而美国则担心政府干预内容的后果（世卫组织的问题）。该论文随后提出，2017 年德国网络执法法在美国和欧洲的演讲传统之间架起了一座桥梁。NetzDG 要求主要平台根据法律规定的语音标准对内容进行审核，以响应用户删除通知。通过私人流程执行公共标准的机制可以说，他擅长同时缓解欧洲人对公共领域缺乏有效言论控制的主要恐惧和美国人对政府审查制度存在的主要恐惧。