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On Thursday, March 23, the #SpeechMatters 2023 conference was hosted by the National Center for Free Speech and Civic Engagement. The meeting was held in the Student Union room 3110 where people gathered to watch the virtual conference from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

The #SpeechMatters movement is a group that is fighting for Democratic Freedoms in the United States. According to the Free Speech Center, In this panel, experts representing industry, faculty, and advocacy groups consider the intersection of technology and expression, answering the essential question: is social media helping or harming democracy?

The meeting began with the University of California (UC) National Center for Free Speech and Civic Engagement Executive Director Michelle Deutchman and UC President Michael V. Drake. Drake said, Like democracy, discovering, creating, and disseminating new knowledge is an endlessly hopeful endeavor. It can give us faith in the power of humans to work toward a better future and to ensure access and opportunity for all to participate in learning and create new knowledge. It is critical to our robust democracy led by citizens empowered to choose their own destiny.

The meeting was moderated by the Chair of the Board of Directors of the Center for SafeSport Jessica Herrera-Flanigan. She began by welcoming the Research Director of the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy Joan Donovan to talk about the question Is social media helping or harming democracy?

Social medias role in democracy is obviously very paradoxicalSocial media platforms, such as Facebook, were weaponized by different groups, dangerous organizations, and governments to harm populations, said Donovan, Political and financial elites use that affordance usually it is done so in a way to oppress the masses or to shape media agendas.

Donovan also said, Now it is very easy to deliver a payload of disinformation to the public reaching millions of people instantaneously with claims that the election had been defrauded, or that something nefarious is happening in local politics. Also, in terms of money or your life Medical misinformation has become a very important and almost impossible-to-ignore problem facing our societies. There is actually a cost to all of this misinformation.

Herrera-Flanigan then invited Co-Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Free Press and Free Press Action Activist Jessica J. Gonzlez to speak. Gonzlez said, Social media is a tool, and like a hammer, it can be used to build beautiful things, but it can also be used to crush skulls Social media has been used to raise awareness on a range of issues from police violence, to family separation, to womens rights, climate justice, and more.

It [social media] also has helped people participate more fully in our democracy, right? Debating the issues of the day without leaving our homes, especially during the pandemic It also helps us learn from people that are different from us [social media] has lowered the communications barriers for people of color and others, who have never been well represented by mainstream media gatekeepers, said Gonzlez.

Gonzlez continued, There is also a vocal, and extreme minority who seek to use social media to crush skulls If we dont stand up to these bullies our democracy is at risk. White supremacists, white nationalists, conspiracy theorists, are using social media to sew chaos, normalize bigotry, and undermine democratic institutions.

When answering the question Is social media helping democracy?, Gonzlez said, No, right now social media companies profit off selling our attention to advertisers. High-engagement content like divisive hate and conspiracy theories keeps users glued to their screens. So the incentives here are all wrong; Algorithms feed content designed to keep us engaged, and they micro-target ads and content based on a carefully curated dossier of our demographic and other sensitive data. They are appealing to our interests, and even more cynically, to our vulnerabilities. The United States has failed to adequately regulate these companies and their exploitation of our private information which has resulted in human and civil rights abuses.

Afterward, Herrera-Flanigan invited the Director of the Tow-Knight Center for Entrepreneurial Journalism at Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism Jeff Jarvis. Jarvis cited Nirit Weiss-Blatt who examined media coverage of the internet.

Jarvis said, She found that the moment that it [media coverage] changed from utopian to dystopian. That moment in her data was the election of Donald Trump I fault my colleagues in journalism and media for their coverage of the net because it was simplistic on both sides. It was simplistically optimistic, now it is simplistically pessimistic.

We have to bring perspective into the discussion about the platforms and social media and technology. I fear that what is happening at this very moment where we are right now is that the hearing is going on in Washington about TikTok. A combination of moral panic about technology and about the children we must do something! Xenophobia about China may lead to the banning of Tik Tok. But what I see when that occurs is the printing press of a hell of a lot of people gets torn out of their hands. That is an issue for freedom of expression, the First Amendment in this country, and the value of speech It is not just about the press, as an institution, it is about speech and speech for all. It is also about assembly; it is also about the action of not being able to petition grievances as occurs in the hashtags #BlackLivesMatter, #MeToo, and #OccupyWallStreet, said Jarvis.

Jarvis said, The greater context here is about speech protecting speech. Which always means that we have to protect bad speech and we have to grapple with it and create institutions to help us ignore it and not spread it so that we can have good speech.

This conference was promoted by UWLs Joint Committee on Free Speech Promotion and the Center for Transformative Justice.

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The #SpeechMatters 2023 conference: Is social media helping or ... - The Racquet

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Good afternoon. Its good to be with you. Thank you, Rose, for your introduction and for all of the work that the Freedom Online Coalition is doing.

It is fitting to be here at the Atlantic Council for this event, because your mission sums up our purpose perfectly: shaping the global future together.

That is our fundamental charge in the field of technology and democracyhow we use modern innovations to forge a better future.

Thats what the DFR Lab strives to achieve through your research and advocacy. Thats what the Freedom Online Coalition, its members, observers, and Advisory Network seek to accomplish through our work. Thank you for your partnership.

More than five decades agoseems like a long time ago, but really, very shortthe internet found its origins in the form of the first online message ever sentall of two letters in length, delivered from a professor at UCLA to colleagues at Stanford.

It was part of a project conceived in university labs and facilitated by government. It was an effort meant to test the outer limits of rapidly evolving technologies and tap into the transformative power of swiftly growing computer networks.

What these pioneers intended, at the time, was actually to devise a system that could allow people to communicate in the event of a nuclear attack or another catastrophic event.

Yet what they created changed everything. How we live and work. How we participate in our economy and our politics. How we organize movements. How we consume media, read books, order groceries, pay bills, run businesses, conduct research, learn, write, and do nearly anything we can think of.

Change didnt happen overnight, of course, and that change came with both promise and peril.

This was a remarkable feat of scientific discovery, and it upended life as we know it, for better and sometimes worse. Over the years, as we went from search engines to social media, we started to face complicated questions, as leaders, as parents and grandparents, as members of the global community.

Questions about how the internet can best be utilized; how it should be governed; who might misuse it; how it impacts our childrens mental and emotional health; who could access it and how we can ensure that access is equitable, benefitting people in big cities, rural areas, and everywhere in between.

Big picture questions arose about these tectonic shiftswhat they would mean for our values and our systems of government. Whether its the internet as we understand it today or artificial intelligence revolutionizing our world tomorrow, will digital tools create more democracy or less? Will they be deployed to maximize human rights or limit them? Will they be used to enlarge the circle of freedom or constrain and contract it?

For the United States, the Freedom Online Coalition, and likeminded partners, the answers should point in a clear direction: at a basic level, the internet should be open and secure for everyone. It should be a force for free enterprise and free expression.

It should be a vast forum that increases connectivity; that expands peoples ability to exercise their rights; that facilitates unfettered access to knowledge and unprecedented opportunities for billions.

Meeting that standard, however, is not simple. Change that happens this fast in society and reaches this far into our lives rarely yields a straightforward response, especially when there are those who seek to manipulate technology for nefarious ends.

The fact is, where all of us may strive to ensure technology delivers for our citizens, autocratic regimes are finding another means of repression.

Where democracies seek to tap into the power of the internet to lift individuals up to their highest potential, authoritarian governments seek to deploy these technologies to divide and disenfranchise; to censor and suppress; to limit freedoms, foment fear, and violate human dignity.

They view the internet not as a network of empowerment, but as an avenue of control. From Cuba and Venezuela to Iran, Russia, the PRC, and beyond, they see new ways to crush dissent through internet shutdowns, virtual blackouts, restricted networks, blocked websites, and more.

Here in the United States, alongside many of you, we have acted to sustain connections to internet-based services and the free flow of information across the globe, so no one is cut off from each other or the outside world, or cut off from the truth.

Yet even with these steps, none of us are perfect.

Every dayalmost everywhere we lookdemocracies grapple with how to harness data for positive ends while preserving privacy; how to bring out the best in modern innovations without amplifying their worst possibilities; how to protect the most vulnerable online while defending the liberties we hold dear.

It isnt an easy taskand in many respects, as Ive said, its only getting harder.

The growth of surveillance capabilities is forcing us to constantly reevaluate how to strike the balance between using technologies for public safety and preserving personal liberties.

The advent of AI is arriving with a level of speed and sophistication we havent witnessed before. It will not be five decades before we know the impact of AI. That impact is happening now.

Who creates it, who controls it, who manipulates it will help define the next phase of the intersection between technology and democracy. By the time we realize AIs massive reach and potential, the internets influence might really pale in comparison.

The digital sphere is evolving at a pace we cant fully fathom and in ways at least I cant completely imagine. Frankly, we have to accept the fact that the FOCs absolutely vital work can feel like a continuous game of catchup. We have to acknowledge that the guidelines we adopt today might seem outdated as soon as tomorrow.

Now, let me be perfectly clear: I am not saying we should throw our hands in the air and give up. To the contrary: Im suggesting that this is a massive challenge we have to confront and a generational charge we have to embrace.

We have to set standards that meet this momentand that lay the foundation for whatever comes next. We have to address what we see in front of usand equip ourselves with the building blocks to tackle what we cannot predict.

To put a spin on a famous phrase: with the great power of these digital tools comes great responsibility to use that power for good.

That duty falls on all our shoulders, and the stakes could not be higher for internet freedom, for our common prosperity, for global progress.

Because expanded connectivitygetting the two billion unconnected people onlinecan drive economic growth; raise standards of living; create jobs; and fuel innovative solutions for everything from combating climate change to reducing food insecurity to improving public health to promoting good governance and sustainable development.

So we need to double-down on what we stand for: an affirmative, cohesive, values-driven, rights-respecting vision for democracy in the digital era.

We need to reinforce rules of the road for cyberspace that mirror and match the ideals of the rules-based international order.

We need to be ready to adapt our legal and policy approaches for emerging technologies.

We need the FOC, alongside partners in civil society, industry, and elsewhere, to remain an essential vehicle for keeping the digital sphere open, secure, interoperable, and reliable.

The United States believes in this cause as a central plank of our democracy and of our diplomacy.

Thats why Secretary Blinken established our Departments Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policyand made digital freedom one of its core priorities.

Thats why the Biden-Harris Administration spearheaded and signed onto the principles in the Declaration for the Future of the Internet, alongside 61 countries ready to advance a positive vision for digital technologies.

Thats why we released core principles for tech platform accountability last fall, and why the President called on Congress to take bipartisan action in January.

Thats why we are committed to using our turn as FOC Chair as a platform to advance a series of key goals.

First, we will deepen efforts to protect fundamental freedoms, including human rights defenders online and offlinemany of whom speak out at grave risk to their own lives and to their families safety. We will do so by countering disruptions to internet access, combating internet shutdowns, and ensuring everyones ability to keep using technology to advance the reach of freedom.

Second, we will focus on building resilience against the rise of digital authoritarianism, the proliferation of commercial spyware, and the misuse of technology, which we know has disproportionate and chilling impacts on journalists, activists, women, and LGBTQI+ individuals.

To that end, just a few hours ago, President Biden issued an Executive Order that, for the first time, will prohibit our governments use of commercial spyware that poses a risk to our national securityor thats been misused by foreign actors to enable human rights abuses overseas.

On top of that step, as part of this weeks Summit for Democracy, the members of the FOC and other partners will lay out a set of Guiding Principles on Government Use of Surveillance Technologies.

These principles describe responsible practices for the use of surveillance tech. They reflect democratic values and the rule of law; adhere to international obligations; strive to address the disparate effect on certain communities; and minimize the data collected.

Our third objective as FOC Chair focuses on artificial intelligence. and the way emerging technologies respect human rights.

As some try to apply AI to help automate censorship of content and suppression of free expression, FOC members must build a consensus around policies to limit these abuses.

Finally, we will strengthen our efforts on digital inclusion. On closing the gender gap online. On expanding digital literacy and skill building. On promoting access to safe online spaces and robust civic participation for all, particularly women and girls, LGBTQI+ persons, those with disabilities, and more.

Heres the bottom line: the FOCs work is essential, and its impact will boil down to what we do, as a coalition, to advance a simple but powerful ideapreserving and promoting the value of openness.

The internet, the web, the online universe is at its best when it is open for creativity and collaboration. Open for innovation and ideas. Open for communication and community, debate and discourse, disagreement and diplomacy.

The same is true for democracya system of governance, a social contract, and a societal structure that is strongest when defined by open spaces to vote, deliberate, gather, demonstrate, organize, and advocate.

This openness could not be more important. Because when the digital world is transparent. when democracy is done rightthats when everyone has a stake in our collective success.

Thats what makes everyone strive for a society that is free and fair, in our politics and in cyberspace.

Thats what will give everyone reason to keep tapping into the positive potential of technology to forge a future of endless possibility and boundless prosperity for all.

Lets keep shaping that future, together.

So, good luck with all your remaining work. Theres lots ahead. And thank you so much for all that you do.

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Remarks for Deputy Secretary Wendy Sherman on Democracy in ... - Department of State

Today, we honor the heroism of Greek revolutionaries who fought for their independence more than two centuries ago and celebrate the sacred idea that has always bound our great nations together: that we the people hold the power to shape our own destinies.

The story of our shared values and common purpose reaches back to Americas founding, when ancient Athenian democracy helped inspire the Framers of our democracy to forge a new system of self-government. Just a few decades later, in 1821, when the courageous women and men of Greece rose up to declare their own independence from the Ottoman Empire, young patriots from the newly formed United States crossed the Atlantic to support the Greek fight for freedom. During World War II, Greeks and Americans joined together against the forces of fascism, understanding in their cores that democracy is worth the sacrifice.

Today, the alliance between Greece and the United States has never been stronger. Together, we are deepening our cooperation on climate and energy, trade and investment, pandemic response, disaster relief, and so much more to shape a healthier, more prosperous, and more just world. In the face of Russias brutal aggression against Ukraine, Greece has once more demonstrated its moral courage and its values condemning Russias aggression and welcoming Ukrainian refugees. Every generation has to defeat democracys mortal foes, and together, we will continue to show the world that the darkness that drives autocracy can never extinguish the flames of liberty.

As Greece and the United States meet the future together, the ties of family and the contributions of Greek Americans continue to strengthen our partnership at every turn. Greek Americans are leaders in every industry and every community, helping build an economy that works for everyone and working toward greater social justice for all. I have been blessed with lifelong friendships and political mentors in the Greek American community, and I have seen firsthand how Greek culture and values enrich our American fabric.

This Greek Independence Day, as we mark 202 years of friendship between the modern Hellenic Republic and the UnitedStates, let us recommit to defending democracy together standing up for the rights, equality, and dignity of all people.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim March 25, 2023, as Greek Independence Day: ANational Day of Celebration of Greek and American Democracy. Icall upon the people of the United States to observe this day with appropriate ceremonies and activities.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-fourth day of March, in the year of our Lord twothousandtwenty-three, and of the Independence of the UnitedStates ofAmerica the twohundred and forty-seventh.

JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.

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A Proclamation on Greek Independence Day: A National Day of ... - The White House

WASHINGTON As part of the 2023 Summit for Democracy, the Treasury Department will host an event highlighting anti-corruption work as a cornerstone of a fair, accountable, and democratic economy. Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen will deliver opening remarks before a panel discussion on corruption with experts in the field, moderated by Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing and Financial Crimes Elizabeth Rosenberg.

In late 2021, the United States announced its first-ever whole-of government strategy to counter corruption, and has been implementing the strategy throughout 2022 and 2023. The event will bring together leaders from government, civil society, and international institutions to discuss the importance of countering corruption and illicit finance to defending democracy, upholding the rule of law, and ensuring an equal economic playing field.

The event is open to credentialed press and will also be livestreamed here.

WHO:

Opening Remarks: Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen

Panel Discussion:

WHEN:Tuesday, March 28, 2023 at 10:30 AM ET

WHERE: U.S. Department of the Treasury Cash Room, 1500 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington DC

Media interested in attending this event should RSVP to press@treasury.gov.

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Treasury to Host Event on Countering Corruption and Illicit Finance ... - Treasury

Expressing concern over the expulsion of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi from the Parliament and his conviction in a defamation case, 1,000 teachers, artists, engineers, advocates, scientists, professors, doctors, house wives, journalists, researchers, businessmen, retired civil servants, students, writers, film makers, cultural workers and members of the civil society from across the country have appealed to people to defend Opposition to save democracy.

In a statement titled, Defend Parliamentary Democracy, 1,000 signatories raise questions about the manner in which the democracy is being run today by the people at the helm of affairs.

It is clear that Rahul Gandhi has been targeted for his relentless criticism of the government, inside and outside the Parliament. The entire episode is not only an assault on the Opposition but also weakens the two pillars of democracy the Judiciary and the Parliament. The action against Rahul Gandhi has to be viewed as part of defaming and criminalising the Opposition and demolishing the entire democratic structure. We appeal to the people to rise to the occasion and defend the Opposition to save Parliamentary democracy in its own interests, before its too late, the statement reads.

It is signed by former Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha; Federation of Catholic Associations of Archdiocese of Delhi; professor Apoorvanand; scientist and poet Gauhar Raza; social activists, Irfan Engineer and Shabnam Hashmi; journalist and activist Javed Anand; artist Mallika Sarabhai; actor Naseeruddin Shah; social activist Nikhil Dey; journalist Niranjan Takle; Ram Puniyani from the National Solidarity Forum; journalist Revati Laul; Roop Rekha Verma from Lucknow; Tushar Gandhi from Mahatma Gandhi Foundation; filmmaker Anand Patwardhan; human rights and peace activist Cedric Prakash and advocate Flavia Agnes to name a few.

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Thousand signatories appeal to people to defend Opposition to save Parliamentary democracy - The Hindu