Ahead of the European Commission's Digital Services Act, this podcast explores why it is essential that the new rules on internet governance enable journalists and independent researchers to gain access to data collected by online platforms, and why it is currently so difficult to scrutinise the algorithmic systems that control our online spaces.
You will hear excerpts from a speech by Margrethe Vestager, Executive Vice President of the European Commission for A Europe Fit for the Digital Age and Competition. She spoke recently at an online webinar where AlgorithmWatch and the EPC presented the outcome and final recommendations of their 'Governing Platforms' project. We also spoke with Tom Dobber, postdoctoral researcher at the Amsterdam School of Communication Research, and Rania Wazir, data scientist and board member of the Vienna Data Science Group. They are two of many researchers who, in the context of AlgorithmWatch's 'Left on Read' campaign, gave an account of their experiences with trying to get access to data on internet platforms.
