2 April 2025
IViR Room, 5th floor, REC A
Welcome to the webpage of the eighth International Media Law, Policy & Practice (IMLPP) conference. Run by students, the conference has been organised as a closing event for the 2025 IMLPP course.
IMLPP is an optional course on the specialised Informatierecht LL.M. programme, which is offered by the Institute for Information Law (IViR) at the Faculty of Law, University of Amsterdam. The course coordinator is Dr. Tarlach McGonagle (IViR).
The main aim of the conference is to provide IMLPP students with a platform to present the research that they have carried out during the course. A number of external expert speakers will participate, but the mainstay of the conference will be presentations by the students themselves. Attendance is open to all students on the Informatierecht LL.M. Programme and all other interested researchers and students.
| Draft conference programme | |
|---|---|
| 09.30 – 09.40 | Welcome Tarlach McGonagle (IViR) |
| 09.40 – 11.00 | Panel I: Tackling (online) hate speech: the role of the European Court of Human Rights Chair: Tarlach McGonagle (IViR) Speakers: Coen Buijs & Kimberly van der Laan (IMLPP), Ali Bozkaya (Lawyer, European Court of Human Rights), Charlotte Devinat (International Network against Cyber Hate, INACH) |
| 11.00 – 11.30 | Tea & coffee |
| 11.30 – 13.10 | International Media Law Moot Court Judges: Willem F. Korthals Altes (former Senior Judge, District Court of Amsterdam); Ali Bozkaya (Lawyer, European Court of Human Rights); others t.b.c. Applicants: Isabella Mahieu & Eveline Thompson (IMLPP) Respondents: Liwia Jarczewska & Ole Oerlemans (IMLPP) |
| 13.10 – 14.00 | Lunch |
| 14.00 – 15.00 | Panel II: Translating Council of Europe media policy into Dutch: challenges and opportunities Chair: t.b.a. Speakers: Anne Jorna, Jean Mattijsen & Isabel Teeuwissen (IMLPP), Imber van Dijk (Onderwijskundig adviseur blended learning, Amsterdam Law School) |
| 15.00 – 16.15 | Boot camp: making a freedom of expression board game Facilitators: Mathilde Bilars, Maud Mutsaerts & Marlotte Stortelers (IMLPP) Gamification techniques: a short introduction by Imber van Dijk (Onderwijskundig adviseur blended learning, Amsterdam Law School) |
| 16.15 – 16.30 | Closing remarks |
Conference manager: Sana Azarfane (IMLPP)
IMLPP Conference 2025 Panel Abstracts
Panel I: Tackling (political) hate speech: the role of the European Court of Human Rights
This panel will launch a new co-creation project involving lecturers and students to develop an online audiovisual library focusing on the European Court of Human Rights’ case-law on hate speech. Students will script and produce short videos in which they critically analyse key Court judgments and decisions on hate speech.
The panel will open with an overview and analysis of the European Court of Human Rights’ case-law on hate speech. The attention will then shift to the more specific theme of hate speech in political and electoral contexts. IMLPP students will critically analyse two path-setting judgments on this theme. They will spell out the importance of the Court’s principles for countering anti-immigrant rhetoric and hate speech in the context of electoral periods.
Moot court
The case involves questions of liability for spreading medical disinformation via media and social media (platforms). The case was written in 2019 and will now be argued with the benefit of hindsight and insights into a body of case-law concerning online disinformation about Covid-19.
Panel II: Translating Council of Europe media policy into Dutch: challenges and opportunities
This panel will showcase the initial findings of a specialized translation project. The central aim of the project is to use translation software and (generative) AI in an ethical and transparent manner to translate a selection of Council of Europe Committee of Ministers’ Recommendations on different themes relating to freedom of expression and media freedom into Dutch. Using their specialized knowledge of media law and policy, the students will check the quality of the translations, paying particular attention to specific legal terminology. They will devise a methodology and ethical guidelines for the exercise. During this panel session, the students will present their methodology, reflect on some of the challenges they encountered and discuss their initial findings on the quality of the translations. The following recommendations have been selected.
Media-related Council of Europe Committee of Ministers’ Recommendations
- Recommendation CM/Rec(2016)4 of the Committee of Ministers to member States on the protection of journalism and safety of journalists and other media actors, 13 April 2016;
- Recommendation CM/Rec(2018)1 of the Committee of Ministers to member States on media pluralism and transparency of media ownership, 7 March 2018;
- Recommendation CM/Rec(2022)4 of the Committee of Ministers to member States on promoting a favourable environment for quality journalism in the digital age, 17 March 2022;
- Recommendation CM/Rec(2022)16 of the Committee of Ministers to member States on combating hate speech, 20 May 2022.
Boot camp
IMLPP students are developing a concept for a board game on the themes of freedom of expression, media freedom, platform regulation and, broadly, information law. They will pitch their initial ideas during this session and an invited expert will give a brief introduction to gamification in higher education. The main boot-camp activity will be to collectively draft questions for the board game.
Practical information:
Registration is free of charge, but compulsory. To register, simply scan the QR-code on the attached flyer and complete the registration form by 18:00 on Wednesday, 26 March 2025. The early deadline is necessary to order the lunch and catering on time.
Address: Institute for Information Law (IViR), Amsterdam Law School, Roeterseilandcampus, Building A, 5th floor, Nieuwe Achtergracht 166, 1018 WV Amsterdam.