Commentary
Bill C-34, the Safe Social Media Act, is being sold as a way to protect children from online harms. Everyone agrees with this goal. However, Bill C-34 would impact all Canadians of all ages: everyone would be subjected to identity screening in order to access social media. The bill would create the Digital Safety Commission, a new, powerful federal regulator with largely undefined authority to censor speech on social media. Further, Bill C-34 would facilitate extensive monitoring of private AI conversations, undermining both our privacy and our freedom of expression.
The Digital Safety Commission will have vast and largely undefined power to force social media platforms and AI chatbot services to comply with policies that the commission itself will create….