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BBC — Technology · October 17, 2026 · On the brief until October 31, 2026

Toxic algorithms wouldn't let them go - now Australia wants an off switch

Media StudiesPublic Policy
THE AI ANGLE
Curating feeds to drive user engagement

Australia introduced legislation requiring social media platforms to let users turn off algorithmic recommendations. The bill forces companies to provide fully functional following-only feeds and introduces a legal duty of care. This shifts regulatory focus from individual content moderation to structural controls on platform design.

Summary written by AI Business Lens with an AI model from the article at bbc.co.uk. It is not the article, and the publisher has not reviewed it. For publishers.

THE TEACHING ANGLE
A major challenge for regulators is preventing tech companies from deliberately degrading feed functionality to discourage users from opting out of algorithms.

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