Nyeri: The debate on whether to regulate social media content has drawn mixed reactions among a section of Nyeri residents with each giving their varied views on the matter. This follows a recent High Court ruling that found Kenya Film Classification Board (KFCB) has a mandate to regulate content on social media platforms such as TikTok, YouTube, and Facebook.
According to Kenya News Agency, the ruling by Justice Lawrence Mugambi at the Milimani Law Court also dismissed a petition filed by singer and content creator William Getumbe Kinyanjui. Getumbe had argued that his content, recorded using a smartphone and shared on Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube, fell outside the scope of the Films and Stage Plays Act. He maintained that the Act was only intended to regulate conventional film production and excluded amateur social media content. He also wanted KFCB barred from pulling down social media and suspending his accounts.
But in his ruling, Justice Mugambi found that KFCB had acted within its legal mandate when it directed the singer to pull down two controversial music videos uploaded on YouTube earlier this year. The court further rejected Getumbe’s arguments that the law does not differentiate between professional and amateur content or between traditional media and digital platforms. ‘As for the claim that the Films and Stage Plays Act does not grant KFCB powers to regulate social media activity, this argument is untenable. The regulation applies to any audio-visual recording made available for public exhibition,’ the court ruled.
However, the court also found that the legal requirement for all audio-visual content intended for public display to first be examined and approved by the KFCB is impractical and constitutes an unjustifiable intrusion into personal privacy. ‘In these contemporary times, when anyone with a smartphone can record a video and upload it to social media for public access, it is absurd to expect the Board to enforce the requirement of examining, classifying, and rating every such video or to demand license fees prior to filming and uploading amateur content,’ ruled the court.
Article 15(1)(a) of the Films and Stage Plays Act mandates KFCB to regulate the creation, broadcasting, possession, distribution, and exhibition of films by examining every content for purposes of classification. The Act also mandates the board to impose age restrictions on viewership, give consumer advice, and have due regard for the protection of women and children against sexual exploitation or degradation in cinematograph films and on the internet.
But Brenda Kamau, a content creator from Nyeri, says the court’s ruling may create a loophole for the Board to interfere with the work of upcoming creative artists who are striving to earn a living through online social media platforms. She says it was equally impractical for the KFCB to monitor and regulate every piece of digital content in the country and now wants the State to promote the budding industry to thrive instead of putting restrictions along the way.
James Kinyua, who doubles as a life coach instructor and a digital content artist, wants the Government to help young upcoming artists grow by coming up with more incentives that could boost the online content industry. He says online content creators should be viewed as law-abiding citizens who are only out trying to make ends meet in a cutthroat business environment.
On her part, Judy Wambui, who markets skincare products online, believes regulating social media platforms should be done without hurting both the consumers and creators. Wambui, who depends heavily on TikTok to market her products, warns that any attempt to regulate online digital content may turn out to be counterproductive to their businesses since the clientele base is quite unpredictable.
But for Margaret Wanjiru and John Mbugua, the absence of independent bodies and stringent laws to regulate social media platforms is a recipe for anarchy and an affront to a morally sound society. They feel that if content creators are left on their own, they will churn out unrestricted content, which will be the first step in building a morally depraved society.
The debate on whether to have stringent rules to help regulate online content has been a contentious subject in Kenya in recent days, attracting condemnation and applause in equal measure. While a section of Kenyans feels regulating social media content is a breach of Article 33 of the Constitution, there are those who feel that left unchecked, the emerging platform may be one slide to the abyss of moral decadency.
In 2023, KFCB had raised concerns over increased sharing of graphic and disturbing audiovisual content on social media platforms in utter disregard of the interests and safety of other members of society. The then Board’s acting CEO Christopher Wambua had noted that some bloggers and social media users had taken to sharing extremely offensive video content with the potential to cause harm to young children. Wambua cautioned that the freedom of expression, which is protected in the Constitution, was not absolute but had certain margins.
