The Fair Play Pledge asks all Irish parties and candidates to commit to playing fair online in the upcoming election.
DCU FuJo and Provenance supported the initiative, which asks parties and candidates to commit to: (1) Campaigning honestly and openly; (2) Respecting the dignity of others; (3) Financial fair play; and (4) Championing election integrity in the new Dáil.
Ireland’s electoral laws provide common rules to deliver free and fair elections but they have not kept pace with changes in modern political campaigning. The existing regulatory framework does not cover much of the digital world, where toxic tactics that would be not permitted or indeed possible offline have undermined electoral processes in other countries.
So far, Ireland’s elections have not been subject to significant international interference or domestic digital disruption but regulatory complacency leaves Irish democracy vulnerable.
Also quoted is @CullotyEileen "Some candidates are engaging in sensational and outrageous behaviour. Journalists need to think very carefully about how they cover those stories,to avoid amplifying and rewarding that kind of behaviour with more coverage and thereby normalising it"
— FairPlayPledge (@FairPlayPledge) January 23, 2020
