First Among Equals? The Role of the State in Facilitating Internet Access and Protecting the Freedom of Expression Online in the Global South

This chapter addresses the twin challenges of facilitating access to the Internet and protecting freedom of expression online, in the Global South. Thus far, Internet regulation has been a multi-stakeholder enterprise, driven primarily by the private sector in the Global North. But this chapter contends that states exert considerable influence over whether and how the Internet is leveraged for the provision of security and justice, especially in the Global South, where the state may retain a monopoly over information flows. The chapter seeks to delineate the appropriate scope of state involvement in facilitating access to the Internet and protecting freedom of expression online in the Global South, finding that states play an important role, in concert with the private sector, regarding access and a preponderant role with respect to protecting the freedom of expression online.

Business · Computer security · Economic Justice · Economics · Freedom of expression · Human rights · Internet access · Internet privacy · Law and economics · Market economy · Monopoly · Political science · Private sector · Public relations · Scope (computer science) · State (computer science) · The Internet · World Wide Web · Computer Science · Cybersecurity and Cyber Warfare Studies · Human Rights and Development · International Arbitration and Investment Law · Law

• International information flow and its impact on developing societies

  Open Access•J Joynes, Joynes J et al.•Annals of the International…•2025

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