The Bundestag's new speaker, Wolfgang Schäuble, has asked lawmakers not to tweet during sessions. The call has been met with resistance and raised questions about social media's role in German politics.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/M. Kappeler
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In a memo sent out earlier this week to all 709 Bundestag members, new parliamentary speaker Wolfgang Schäuble said that the use of mobile devices "to photograph, tweet or distribute information about the session" was inappropriate and thus "undesired."
The German parliament's procedural rules do not provide any rules for the use of social media during parliamentary meetings. In fact, lawmakers' social media activity, particularly coming from the sidelines of plenary debates, has often provided a window into how Germany's political machine works.
Nowhere was this more evident than in the run-up to the German lower houses' decision to legalize gay marriage earlier this year. Parliamentarians took to Twitter and Facebook in droves to share their views ahead of what proved to be a historic vote.
Digital strategies in German election campaign
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A move that muffles the AfD?
Schäuble's motive, therefore, remains unclear, although it may be tied to the far-right Alternative for Germany's (AfD) entry into the Bundestag.
The AfD has been accused of exploiting radicalization online for its own political gain. In an interview with German media last year, Justice Minister Heiko Maas said that "catering to xenophobic sentiment is part of the AfD's approach."
Maas went on to say that the far-right party posts xenophobic statements online only to walk them back later. But by then, he added, "the oil has already been added to the fire."
This came to a head in the run-up to September's general election, when research into the AfD's online presence showed that the party was far more successful than all of Germany's other parties in harnessing social media to engage with its prospective voter base. A study by the Oxford Computational Propaganda project found that around 30 percent of all election-related tweets between September 1 and 10 contained hashtags specifically associated with the AfD.
The party ultimately finished third in September's vote, taking more than 13 percent of the vote and claiming 92 seats in the new parliament.
Lawmakers across all parties hit back at Twitter ban
While social media has penetrated the German political landscape, its impact has been far more limited than, say, in the United States.
Ahead of the election, only a select few candidates employed a team to handle digital presence or invest in online campaign advertising. It was amid that reliance on traditional campaign methods that the AfD and their legion of tech-savvy supporters capitalized.
Whatever Schäuble's intentions, the proposed ban was met with backlash and derision from across the political spectrum.
Christian Social Union politician Dorothee Baer told Germany's Funke Media Group Thursday that, while she too was critical of the use of smartphones in the Bundestag to a point, "social media, when used properly, is the digital counterpart to the glass dome of our parliament building as a symbol and means of transparency."
Social media, Baer added, had built bridges to citizens "that I would hate to see torn down."
Petra Sitte of the Left Party went a step further, stating she would outright ignore Schäuble's request and saying: "We live in an open media society in which speed is sometimes everything."
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Image: picture-alliance/dpa/W. Kastl
Free speech or illegal content?
Whether hate speech, propaganda or activism, governments across the globe have upped efforts to curb content deemed illegal from circulating on social networks. From drawn-out court cases to blanket bans, DW examines how some countries try to stop the circulation of illicit content while others attempt to regulate social media.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/W. Kastl
Social media law
After a public debate in Germany, a new law on social media came into effect in October. The legislation imposes heavy fines on social media companies, such as Facebook, for failing to take down posts containing hate speech. Facebook and other social media companies have complained about the law, saying that harsh rules might lead to unnecessary censorship.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/T. Hase
Right to be forgotten
In 2014, the European Court of Justice ruled that European citizens had the right to request search engines, such as Google and Bing, remove "inaccurate, inadequate, irrelevant or excessive" search results linked to their name. Although Google has complied with the ruling, it has done so reluctantly, warning that it could make the internet as "free as the world's least free place."
Image: picture-alliance/ROPI/Eidon/Scavuzzo
Blanket ban
In May 2017, Ukraine imposed sanctions on Russian social media platforms and web services. The blanket ban affected millions of Ukrainian citizens, many of whom were anxious about their data. The move prompted young Ukrainians to protest on the streets, calling for the government to reinstate access to platforms that included VKontakte (VK), Russia's largest social network.
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Safe Harbor
In 2015, the European Court of Justice ruled that Safe Harbor, a 15-year-old pact between the US and EU that allowed the transfer of personal data without prior approval, was effectively invalid. Austrian law student Max Schrems launched the legal proceedings against Facebook in response to revelations made by former US National Security Agency (NSA) contractor, Edward Snowden.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/J. Warnand
Regulation
In China, the use of social media is highly regulated by the government. Beijing has effectively blocked access to thousands of websites and platforms, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest. Instead, China offers its citizens access to local social media platforms, such as Weibo and WeChat, which boast hundreds of millions of monthly users.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/Imaginechina/Da Qing
Twitter bans Russia-linked accounts
Many politicians and media outlets blame Russia's influence for Donald Trump's election victory in 2016. Moscow reportedly used Facebook, Twitter, Google, and Instagram to shape public opinion on key issues. In October 2017, Twitter suspended over 2,750 accounts due to alleged Russian propaganda. The platform also banned ads from RT (formerly Russia Today) and the Sputnik news agency.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/M. Rourke
Facebook announces propaganda-linked tool
With social media under pressure for allowing alleged Russian meddling, Facebook announced a new project to combat such efforts in November 2017. The upcoming page will give users a chance to check if they "liked" or followed an alleged propaganda account on Facebook or Instagram. Meanwhile, Facebook has come under fire for not protecting user data in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
