The Council of the European Union’s ban of Russian media outlets: possible implications for the DSA

Prof. Natali Helberger, a contributor to the DSA Observatory and Prof. Wolfgang Schulz of the Hans-Bredow Institute, Hamburg published a blog post on the Media@LSE blog titled: Understandable, but still wrong: How freedom of communication suffers in the zeal for sanctions.

The authors discuss the ban of Russia Today (RT) and Sputnik by the Council of the European Union in March 2022 and its implications for media freedom and freedom of communications. Specifically, they consider the implications of this ban in light of the ‘general monitoring ban’ under article 7 of the Digital Services Act (currently article 15, E-commerce Directive) and the newly introduced ‘crisis response mechanism’ in Article 27a of the DSA.

Understandable, but still wrong: How freedom of communication suffers in the zeal for sanctions

June 10, 2022

It was announced at the end of February that Kremlin-backed media outlets Russia Today (RT) and Sputnik would be banned in the EU, and the decision was confirmed by the Council of the European Union on 2 March 2022, meaning that no broadcasters or online platforms are permitted to distribute RT/Sputnik content within the EU, and regulators are expected to monitor compliance. The ban had led to heated discussions regarding the potential consequences for freedom of expression and access to information online, and to a proposal for a new crisis mechanism in the latest version of the Digital Services Act. Here, Professor Natali Helberger of the University of Amsterdam and Professor Wolfgang Schulz of the Hans-Bredow Institute, Hamburg, explain the implications of the ban for media freedom and freedom of communication.

Read the full blog post here.