As the international community has further opened its eyes to the dangerous patterns of censorship and discrimination against Palestinians and Palestinian narratives online, particularly on social media platforms, many have called for legislative reform, policy changes at the company level, and more attention to the needs and concerns of Palestinians on the part of stakeholders in the technology industry. While some limited partnerships and reforms have made progress on this issue, there is still an enormous gulf in the area of policy responses to the problem of online discrimination against Palestinians.
What are some of the implications of this phenomenon? How might it impact movements for Palestinian rights, and broader international attention to the Israel-Palestine question? What are some potential policy steps - both for social media and technology companies, governments and states, and other civil society groups and stakeholders - that might start to address this challenge in a more systematic way? This panel will explore the policy responses to this complex issue, and hope to draw attention to some concrete policy reforms for the future.
This webinar is the second in a series examining the impact and implications of digital censorship of Palestinian voices and online advocacy regarding Palestine.
Speakers:
Radhika Sainath
Senior staff attorney, Palestine Legal
Mona Shtaya
Local advocacy manager, 7amleh
Ashraf Zeitoon
Advisor and investor; former director of public policy, Middle East, Turkey & Africa, Netflix; former head of policy, Middle East and North Africa, Facebook
Eliza Campbell, moderator
Associate director, Impact and Innovation, MEI
Photo by Gokhan Kurtaran/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images