The Irish Government’s continuing trajectory towards increasing levels of censorship has put the nation on our trans-Atlantic cousin’s naughty step once again after the Trump administration released a report criticizing Ireland’s direction of travel.
The report released by the U.S. House Judiciary Committee on Friday, July 25th, denounced the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA)-implemented primarily through Ireland’s media regulator-as a vehicle for censorship and a form of foreign interference in American democratic processes.
Advocacy Group Free Speech Ireland reacted to the report calling it “yet another indictment of the Irish government’s alignment with censorship-first digital regulation,”.
The group, which rose to prominence during the pushback against the Irish government’s efforts to implement hate speech laws via the Criminal Justice Incitement to Hatred Act 2022, said the government is now “placing not only the public’s right to free expression but Ireland’s broader economic and diplomatic interests at serious risk in pursuit of a politicised agenda.”
The report follows a previous warning by the US State Department where travel restrictions for officials who are involved in the enforcement of the Digital Services Act (DSA).
As Gript previously reported, the DSA requires online services, specified platforms, and search engines, to have an ongoing relationship with ‘trusted flaggers’ and take action when given a notice of alleged illegal content.
The legislation has been described as “major,” with the potential to be as influential as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) passed in 2014. While advocates say it will put an end to weak self-regulation, concerns have been heard that it could be used by governments as a tool for censorship.
FSI says the DSA grants “significant powers to the European Commission, national regulators, and designated NGOs to compel the removal of online content across jurisdictions.”
This has sparked major concern given the presence of major US tech giant’s headquarters in Dublin signifying that Ireland’ s media regulator, Coimisiún na Meán, may become the EU’s central enforcement authority-placing the country at the forefront of any potential geopolitical or economic backlash.
The US report characterises the DSA as “inherently un-American,” saying that the flagger mechanism, by which approved third parties are granted priority status in content takedown requests is “uniformly pro-censorship”.
It makes reference to the 2019 Glawischnig-Piesczek v. Facebook Ireland Ltd decision to highlight the low legal threshold applied by European courts in determining ‘hate speech,’ arguing that the EU is seeking to globalise a restrictive standard that contradicts U.S. First Amendment principles.
CEO of FSI, Sarah O’Reilly, said that “Friday’s report should be a game-changer as to how the Irish government manages the free speech question, illustrating perfectly that our economic future and reliability as an international tech hub depend on protecting online expression. The Judiciary Committee’s report makes Ireland enemy number one in Europe’s censorship agenda, undermining Ireland’s international standing.”
“Free Speech Ireland calls on the government to radically reconsider, scale back, and, if not, revoke the DSA, and instead aim to become Europe’s free speech guardian.”
O’Reilly called the DSA “a backdoor for hate speech legislation, potentially installing by proxy the worst censorship regimes in Europe onto the Irish public.”.
“Protecting free speech is not just a moral imperative-it’s an economic necessity.
Ireland’s regulators must chart a course that upholds speech rights. Free expression is not just a principle-it’s a pillar of our economic and democratic future.” she said.
Warning Labels on Alcohol Bottles
Freedom of expression is not the only issue that has come to the attention of the Americans, as plans to place warning labels on alcoholic beverages also drew ire from across the Atlantic.
The plans, which would see Ireland become the first country in the world to put health warnings on alcohol, are now set to be delayed while disagreement over tariffs with the Trump Administration continues.
Tánaiste Simon Harris said that the move will need to be delayed due to the trade tariff dispute with the US. Concerns have been building due to President Donald Trump threatening to impose 50% tariffs (a 30% increase) if a deal was not struck by 9th July.
Occupied Territories Bill
Ireland’s moves to bring forward the Occupied Territories Bill as a means of economic sanction against Israel has also resulted in sharp criticism from the White House.
In response to the bill, U.S. Senate Foreign Affairs Relations Committee chair John Risch said that Ireland, although “often a valuable U.S. partner” is now on “a hateful, antisemitic path that will only lead to self-inflicted economic suffering.”
Although the original proposal of the bill targeted the small goods trade between Ireland and Israel, it is now understood that the Foreign Affairs Committee is to recommend that the government also include services in the boycott.
Risch said, “ If this legislation is implemented, America will have to seriously reconsider its deep and ongoing economic ties. We will always stand up to blatant antisemitism.”