Moraes gives Lira and Pacheco proposals for the Fake News PL

The President of the Superior Electoral Court (TSE), Minister Alexandre de Moraes, delivered this Tuesday (25) to the Presidents of the Chamber, Arthur Lira (PP-AL), and of the Senate, Rodrigo Pacheco (PSD-MG), proposals for additive amendments to Bill No. 2.630/2020, known as the Fake News PL. The House approved this night the emergency regime and should vote on the project in plenary next week.

Moraes pointed out that the proposals were drawn up based on the experience of the TSE in dealing with disinformation in the 2022 elections and based on the investigations in progress at the Federal Supreme Court (STF) that investigate the activities of digital militias. According to the Electoral Court, in a note, the minister pointed out that “what cannot be done in real life, cannot be done in the virtual world”.

“We want to balance responsibilities. And I add to the text approved by the Federal Senate the responsibility of all providers – whether social networks or messaging – for content in which they win”, said Moraes. “We cannot allow that, in the 2024 Elections, and then in 2026, there will continue to be disinformation attacks. It goes against democracy, it goes against the freedom of voters,” he added.

Proposals for amendments to the Fake News PL

Among the proposals presented by the minister are the possibility of holding social network providers accountable in solidarity for not immediately removing content and accounts that spread disinformation about the electoral process from the air; that incite violence against the State’s physical infrastructure to prevent “the exercise of constitutional powers” or the “violent abolition of the democratic rule of law”; that contain hate speech or promote racism, homophobia, Nazi ideologies, reported Agência Senado

The president of the TSE defends the need to establish the level of responsibility of the so-called big techs, mainly for content where there is monetization and boosting by algorithms.

The minister also proposes that civil and administrative liability be applied in cases of “dissemination or sharing of facts that are known to be untrue or seriously out of context that affect the integrity of the electoral process, including the voting, counting and totaling of votes”.

“Accountability must also apply to cases of serious threat, direct and immediate, of violence or incitement to violence against the physical integrity of public officials or against the physical infrastructure of the State to restrict or prevent the exercise of constitutional powers or the violent abolition of the Democratic Rule of Law”, said the TSE, in a note.

Moraes’ proposal also provides for a fine of R$100,000 to R$150,000 per hour for platforms to leave content “known to be untrue or seriously out of context that affects the integrity of the electoral process, including the voting, counting and totaling of votes” .

The fine begins to take effect from the end of the second hour after receiving the notification, except on the eve of the elections. “Between the day before and the three days following the holding of the election, the fine will apply from the end of the first hour after receiving the notification”, says the document that reports the additive amendments.