• The US has objected to UK proposals that could require social-media and video platforms to make selected news providers more prominent
  • Britain has not yet decided which publishers would qualify as trustworthy or how platforms would have to deliver the additional visibility

The fact

The US government has challenged a UK proposal that could require social-media platforms to give greater prominence to selected news providers. In a response dated 2 September, Washington raised concerns about how Britain would decide which organisations qualify as trustworthy and how the rules could affect independent publishers and American technology companies.

The proposal comes from the UK's media green paper, published in June. It explores legislation that could require social-media and potentially video-sharing platforms to make news from public service media and other qualifying national and local publishers more prominent and easier to find. The government says any system should be flexible and based on outcomes rather than prescribing one technical method.

Britain has not decided the criteria for a trustworthy news provider. The government has suggested that the recognised news publisher definition in the Online Safety Act could be a starting point. UK publishing groups and the National Union of Journalists have also warned against allowing the state to decide which journalism receives preferential treatment.

The assessment

The practical question is how a media rule would be turned into a platform feature. If the UK proceeds, platforms would need a way to identify qualifying publishers, connect that status with their accounts and content, and then make that material easier for UK users to find.

The government has not said whether this would require changes to feed ranking, search results, dedicated news sections or another part of the interface. It is also considering whether prominence should operate all the time or only during periods such as elections, public disorder or other crises.

That makes the definition of a trustworthy publisher more than a political argument. Platforms need to know which organisations qualify, when the rule applies and what level of visibility counts as compliance before they can build or test a system around it. For BTW readers, the important development would be regulation becoming an input into the systems that decide what users see. The final rules will determine how much platforms have to change those systems specifically for the UK.

What to Watch

Watch for the government's planned White Paper and any definition of a trustworthy news provider. The key details will be which platforms are covered, whether prominence is permanent or triggered by particular events, how users can control it and how compliance will be measured. Those decisions will show what platforms actually have to build or change.