Today, the Freedom Online Coalition (FOC) issued a Joint Statement on Information Integrity Online and Elections. The drafting of the statement was led by the co-Chairs of the FOC’s Task Force on Information Integrity Online (TFIIO), with input from Coalition Member States and the independent multistakeholder FOC Advisory Network.
The FOC underscores that democracies depend on open, free, and inclusive public debate and free and fair elections that help hold governments accountable and responsive to their citizens. The Coalition recognizes the complexity – and imperative – of building and sustaining information integrity online, particularly around elections.
With 2024 being a historic election year, the statement underscores that individuals must be able to engage in open discourse, share information, and form opinions to ensure effective political participation during electoral periods, with access to diverse, accurate, trustworthy and reliable information being an essential cornerstone for informed voting and decision-making throughout the whole electoral cycle, and thus for democracy itself.
The Coalition emphasises that efforts to address and mitigate key challenges, such as mis- and disinformation and the malicious use of AI tools, by strengthening the online information ecosystem should promote a pro-democratic vision and values, such as respect for pluralism and diversity; inclusion, safety, and security; access and agency of users and citizens; and the accuracy, trustworthiness, and reliability of information.
Building on the FOC’s Joint Statements on Internet Shutdowns and Elections (2023) and the Spread of Disinformation Online (2020), the Joint Statement on Information Integrity Online and Elections notes specific calls to action for States, platforms and the broader tech industry, including promoting and protecting information integrity online and combating malicious efforts that undermine democratic systems and human rights.
The FOC Task Force on Information Integrity Online was established in 2023, and is co-Chaired by Denmark, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and the Wikimedia Foundation. The Task Force continues the work of the Action Coalition on Trustworthy Information Online, established under the Danish Tech for Democracy Initiative.
To read the full statement, visit the following link.
