The European Commission has announced online platforms and the advertising industry have agreed to a self-regulatory Code of Practice that includes several commitments to counter online disinformation. Commissioner for Digital Economy and Society Mariya Gabriel welcomed the move but says more needs to be done. "The industry is committing to a wide range of actions, from transparency in political advertising to the closure of fake accounts and demonetisation of purveyors of disinformation, and we welcome this," she said. Signatories of the code committed to empower "the research community to monitor online disinformation through privacy-compliant access to the platforms' data." Relatedly, a new report has been released by Harvard and New America. It is highly critical of the business models of big technology companies and their effect on democracy. "The crisis for democracy posed by digital disinformation demands a new social contract for the internet rooted in transparency, privacy and competition," the report's executive summary states.
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