Draft Law on Amending and Supplementing the Media Act

(1) The Ministry of Culture released a new Draft Law on Amending and Supplementing the Media Act, which states that in order to regulate hate speech – especially on online media platforms – the "editor-in-chief" should be held liable for user-generated content (comments and other audiovisual material). Furthermore, the "editor-in-chief" must implement and publish rules for the selection and inclusion of comments. All comments that are not in line with such rules must be deleted in the shortest time possible. Failing to meet listed obligations constitutes a misdemeanor for which the "editor-in-chief" could be fined between 500 and 5000 euros.

(2) The Information Commissioner has already expressed concerns regarding the purposed amendments by stating that such obligations could seriously impede constitutionally protected freedom of speech. The Commissioner has also emphasized that such responsibility leads to general monitoring obligation which is explicitly prohibited by Slovenian (Article 8 of ZEPT) and European law (Article 15 of eCommerce directive).