Canada’s Liberals discuss proposal to censor news websites whose sources can’t be ‘traced’
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(LifeSiteNews) – A top Canadian internet analyst has sounded the alarm over a Liberal Party proposal being discussed this week that calls for online news “publications” whose sources can’t be “verified” to in effect be censored.
The Liberal proposal to curb online news sites will be discussed at its Party National Convention, which began Thursday and will conclude Saturday in Ottawa. It was one of 20 proposals brought forth by various provincial arms of the party, which made it on the list to be discussed.
The online news proposal is listed in the proposed 2023 Policy Resolutions titled “Combatting Disinformation in Canada” and was sponsored by the Liberal Party of Canada (British Columbia).
A section reads, “BE IT RESOLVED THAT the Liberal Party of Canada: Request the Government explore options to hold on-line information services accountable for the veracity of material published on their platforms and to limit publication only to material whose sources can be traced.”
Another resolution reads that the government “provide additional public funds to support advertisement-free news and information reporting by Canadian media through an arm’s-length non-partisan mechanism.”
Michael Geist, who serves as the research chair of internet and e-commerce law at the University of Ottawa and is critical of federal online censorship legislation that recently passed, was quick to blast the Liberal proposal as the party trying to curb Canadians’ “freedom of expression.”
“Liberal Party policy proposal calls for online information services ‘to limit publication only to material whose sources can be traced.’ An obvious violation of freedom of expression was voted as one of the top 20 policy resolutions for party discussion,” Geist tweeted.
In a blog post today, Geist wrote that while it is not clear what the Liberals mean by “online information services,” the overall “outcome is dangerous no matter the scope.”
“Is this all news outlets with a focus on their online presence? Is it online-only news sources? Is this far broader and designed to encompass Internet platforms such as Google, Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok (note the reference to “platforms”) with requirements that they be held accountable for posts without traceable sources,” Geist said.
“The implications of the government engaging in this form of heavy-handed speech regulation are dangerous in all of these circumstances. Sourcing is an important issue in the media and the government cannot claim to support press freedom and simultaneously back policies that intervene in sourcing.”