Nadine Dorries has just told the commons chamber she wants to force social media companies to stop "pile ons". How will that work without hindering free speech?
My understanding is that a "pile on" is when I tweet something and Owen Jones say it is wicked and wrong and a hundred of his followers agree with him. I am totally unharmed by this, particularly as I regard it as part of my day job to make Twitter monkeys dance.
How will a "pile on" be defined? How many people acting in concert will constitute a "pile on". What if the people piling on are correct and what I have said is wicked and wrong? Will they be suspended and my wrongful wickedness be allowed to stand?
Aren't campaigning #hashtags actually coordinated pile ons? Isn't #PutinMustFail a pile on? Or is it okay to organise pile ons against bad people? Will there be lists of bad people we can pile on against? When newspapers attack people on their front pages is that not a pile on?
If newspapers are exempt from anti pile on laws will that apply to their online websites?
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