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Understanding online safety through metaphors: UK policymakers and industry discourses about the internet
Version 2 2023-06-12, 08:05
Version 1 2023-06-10, 00:57
journal contribution
posted on 2023-06-12, 08:05 authored by Marina DekavallaMarina DekavallaThis article explores how metaphors about what the internet is inform policymaker and industry discourses, when they propose solutions on internet safety. More specifically, it analyzes documents by key players in this debate during a period when the UK government proposed direct regulation of online harms. The study finds that policy documents construct the internet primarily as a “place” that is separate from offline experience; and to a smaller extent as a “tool” that can be abused if it falls in the wrong hands. The article argues that these constructions obscure any links between online and offline risk, and that they legitimize solutions which may not take into account the social roots of online harms. It also suggests that the discourses of policymakers and SNS companies differ in the degree of agency they attribute to users, indicating a discrepancy in their approaches as direct regulation is introduced in the UK.
History
Publication status
- Published
File Version
- Published version
Journal
Television and New MediaISSN
1527-4764Publisher
SAGE PublicationsExternal DOI
Page range
1-19Department affiliated with
- Media and Film Publications
Full text available
- Yes
Peer reviewed?
- Yes
Legacy Posted Date
2021-09-13First Open Access (FOA) Date
2021-09-13First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date
2021-09-13Usage metrics
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