Governing Social Media as a Public Utility

Abstract

The authors argue that social media's engagement-driven business model creates structural conflicts of interest that amplify misinformation and societal harms. Current governance frameworks, such as the US Section 230 and the EU Digital Services Act, delegate content moderation to corporations with insufficient democratic oversight. They propose reimagining social media platforms as sovereign digital infrastructure governed through democratic oversight, transparent algorithms, and institutional safeguards. Their framework combines legislated content removal with democratic moderation processes to balance public interest against commercial incentives while protecting free expression.

Peer Review

Community peer review and discussion of this publication.