Fake News and International Law

On 14 May 2021, the Office of the Representative on Freedom of the Media (RFoM)
organizes an expert meeting to discuss international law and policy on disinformation in the
context of freedom of the media. Its aim is to serve as food-for-thought and to inspire further
discussions on the matter within and among all OSCE participating States.
2. The international problem of how to counteract the dissemination of false reports and
information detrimental to peace, security and co-operation has existed for a hundred years.
There is a body of international law that addresses disinformation, especially in the context of
the harm it has on international relations. Today, the desire to find a solution has risen in line
with the growth of the media’s influence, intensified by the role that social media plays in
informing the public. A number of ideas are floating in intergovernmental forums, other than
the OSCE, as to how to limit the harmful effects of disinformation, especially if it sows
distrust among nations.
3. The prevalence of online and offline disinformation can threaten security in the OSCE region,
participating States’ sovereignty, political independence, territorial integrity and the security
of their citizens. This paper therefore notes the larger context of the comprehensive approach
of the OSCE to security, in which the protection of human rights, including freedom of
expression and freedom of the media, is seen as an integral part of the OSCE’s participating
States’ contribution to peace and security. On several occasions, the OSCE Representative on
Freedom of the Media highlighted – as her predecessors did before her – that this approach,
acknowledging the intertwined character of peace and security efforts in the three dimensions
of the OSCE (political and military, economic and environmental policies, and the human
dimension), defines the unique character of the OSCE and has been confirmed many times.
4. The current media environment and the widespread proliferation of propaganda-driven
disinformation confront professional traditional media entities with numerous new challenges,
and place a heavier burden on journalists and standards of journalism. By blurring the lines
between false and true, disinformation undermines public trust in quality journalism and its
role in a democratic society.
5. The problem of disinformation calls upon politicians, intergovernmental organizations, civil
society and businesses, as major stakeholders, to address the urgent need of assessing the
feasibility and effectiveness of existing measures to counteract its intentional spread, as well
as their conformity to the OSCE commitments. There are many additional political challenges
to designing regulation of disinformation, one of them being that some governments might
exploit constraints on disinformation to curtail freedom of expression. The problem also
relates to issues with the definitions related to the phenomenon, such as their vagueness.