OTTAWA – The federal government today released what it is calling the “guiding principles” to pave the way for “international consensus among countries, the private sector and civil society organizations” when it comes to diversity of online content.
“Exposure to diverse content can contribute to a healthier public discourse and greater social inclusion, while also countering disinformation and increasing people’s ability to participate in democratic processes,” reads the press release from the office of Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Canadian Heritage and which quotes his counterparts from France, Germany, and Finland, as well as Jason Kee of Google Canada and Tessa Sproule of Vubble.
Canada is leading the multi-stakeholder global group, which says the guiding principles focus on four key themes:
- the creation, access and discoverability of diverse content online
- the fair payment and economic viability of content creators
- the promotion of diverse, credible sources of news and information as well as resilience against disinformation
- the transparency of the impacts of algorithmic treatments of online content
“The guiding principles will continue to evolve over time to keep pace with a continuously evolving online environment, with a view to encouraging greater exposure to diverse online cultural content, information and news,” reads the announcement.
In the coming months, members of the working group will develop more specifics and will work towards building “a larger international consensus between countries, the private sector and civil society organizations.”
Please click here for the full principles.
“An international multi-stakeholder approach is essential to the success of this initiative. We can no longer ignore the challenges and opportunities that come with an increasingly digital world. We have to act now to ensure a healthy ecosystem online for all citizens. We are stronger when we work together as a global community,” is Guilbeault’s quote at the bottom of the release.
“We believe these principles provide a critical framework for what we all need to work on—dominant corporations and startups alike. Vubble looks forward to sharing its specific commitments. Datasets as public utilities, explainable and auditable AI, privacy-focused first party data from a citizen’s perspective… Let’s reimagine the information ecosystem and start building it,” said Sproule in the release.
The entire working group includes officials from Australia, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Deezer, Google, Netflix, Vubble, Article19, Coalition française pour la diversité Culturelle, International Federation of Coalitions for Cultural Diversity, Society of Authors, Composers and Publishers of Music, and the European Audiovisual Observatory
