US Warns Australia's Social Media Algorithm Reforms Could Enable Censorship

The Trump administration has criticized Australia's proposed social media algorithm reforms, warning they would likely be viewed as "facilitating censorship." The draft laws would require platforms to offer a default content feed with an opt-out option. Under the proposal from Australia's Labor government, social media platforms must notify users and provide a default algorithm-recommended feed, allowing users to instead see posts only from followed accounts. The U.S. Embassy in Canberra filed a formal submission late Tuesday expressing "serious concerns" about mandating how platforms manage content. The U.S. submission was part of Australia's public consultation process on the draft laws, which were proposed this month. The reforms aim to give users more control over their social media experience, but Washington argues they could lead to restrictive content moderation practices.