Dr Phoebe Galbally completed her PhD in October 2024 at the University of Melbourne.

Thesis Title
Regulating Democratically Harmful Social Media Communication

Research Description
Social media communication is affecting democracies around the world. This issue is drawing the attention of governments and academics who are attempting to address the problems raised by political communication on social media platforms. Within this context, this thesis focuses on the regulation of ‘democratically harmful social media communication’ (DHSMC). DHSMC is an umbrella term used in this thesis that is broadly defined as speech that is disseminated by (or on behalf of) foreign or domestic entities via social media platforms, and which, through its capacity to manipulate political decisions, causes democratic harm. This thesis argues that DHSMC is a type of speech which threatens democratic autonomy by undermining the capacity for individuals to engage in free democratic deliberation to reach decisions on political matters. In doing so, DHSMC may undermine the preconditions necessary for democratic legitimacy in relation to freedom of expression. Accordingly, this thesis argues that DHSMC ought to be regulated by the state through legal measures imposing obligations on social media platforms. In making this claim, this thesis draws on a comparative method to examine how DHSMC disseminated by foreign or domestic entities could be regulated in a manner which conforms to the right to freedom of expression. This thesis therefore examines constitutional, human rights, and legislative frameworks in a range of European jurisdictions, in addition to scholarship on the tension between the right to freedom of expression and democracy.

Supervisor
Prof Andrew Kenyon, the University of Melbourne
Prof Adrienne Stone, MLS