Alex Tharby and Tracy Cole write:
On September 8, 2021, the High Court delivered the landmark Voller decision, dismissing appeals by media outlets against the decision of the New South Wales Supreme Court which held that the news media and users of social media and other internet platforms may be held liable for content posted by others to their pages.
Unhappy with the result, the media outlets led by the vocal Murdoch press lobbied for the introduction of laws that will exempt them from liability in such circumstances.
On Wednesday (December 1), the Federal Government proposed changes, signalling a significant watering-down of the effect of the decision in Voller in an exposure draft of the Social Media (Anti-Trolling) Bill 2021 – even though a detailed reform process to consider the very same issues is already being undertaken by the NSW Government.
Read more at Inforrm’s Blog.