Tough new EU hate speech regulations on Big Tech will have their first major trial in Slovakia at the end of the month, as the Eastern European nation looks set to upset the liberal order by potentially electing pro-Kremlin populists in the form of Robert Fico and his Smer party.
The politically fragmented country will head to the polls on September 30th in the first European election since the rollout of the controversial Digital Services Act (DSA), which obliges major tech platforms such as TikTok and Twitter to combat political misinformation.
Both an EU and a NATO member, Slovakia has been severely impacted by energy sanctions against Russia. The country’s ex-PM and primary opposition figure Robert Fico now weighs up the possibility of a grand coalition of Russophile and ultra-right parties.
Slovakia’s liberal-led multiparty administration collapsed in January following the loss of a no-confidence vote on tackling corruption, as Bratislava struggled with soaring energy prices.
While there is no certainty of a victory for Fico and anti-NATO populism, the Slovakian election coincides with the introduction of the DSA which applies to tech platforms with 45 million monthly users or more. It also requires companies to do most of the work on imposing EU anti-misinformation and anti-hate speech regulations.
The European Commission specifically flagged Slovakia during the rollout of the DSA with Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton warning about misinformation spreading on Facebook ahead of the vote as the scarcity of Slovakian content moderators complicated affairs.
YouTube and Facebook have already moved ahead in complying with the DSA by banning multiple pro-Russian and nationalist accounts, while TikTok has so far dragged its feet on clamping down on dissident voices.
Under the terms of the DSA, platforms are also required to engage the services of third-party fact checkers as of February next year with Facebook and YouTube employing the services of the Czech-based company Demagog.cz to monitor the Slovakian election and help moderate content.
