HATE SPEECH AND SOCIAL MEDIA

In: Teme: časopis za društvene nauke : journal for social sciences, S. 191

Abstract

In the 21st century – the time of the Internet, hate speech is present throughout social media. Hate speech existed even before the advent of the Internet. However, what is different about online hate speech is the speed at which it is transmitted on certain social media, such as Twitter and Facebook. In this sense, the question of whether and to what extent online hate speech should, or rather should not be protected was posed. This paper aims to explore whether online hate speech deserves freedom of expression protection. Public officials, civil servants, and politicians often use different social media platforms, especially Twitter, to communicate new political ideas, upcoming events, and even conspiracy theories. In this sense, the aim of the paper is to investigate whether a need to balance between constitutionally protected freedom of expression and the core values of democratic society arose from the development of Internet technology.