Ofcom Bottles Up Free Expression Online

The new Ofcom guidance on online content might soon influence not only what people say online, but how they decide whether to say it at all.

The guidance, which aims to make the internet a safer place, grants Ofcom greater oversight over what’s allowed on major platforms. The idea is to protect users from harmful content. On the surface, that seems like a fair enough goal. But the real issue is defining "harmful." It’s a word that sounds straightforward, but in practice, it’s anything but. The vagueness of that definition means platforms will be left to interpret it for themselves—and they’ll likely play it safe.

This isn’t about banning free speech outright. Ofcom isn’t saying you can’t express controversial opinions. But when platforms fear the consequences of getting it wrong, they’ll naturally lean towards caution. It’s easier to remove content than to risk penalties, even if that content is simply uncomfortable rather than harmful. The end result could be that online spaces become more restricted, less diverse in thought, and, ultimately, less useful.

You might think this is a good thing. Nobody wants to see harmful misinformation, hate speech, or abusive behaviour. But the problem with broad guidelines is that they can sweep up more than just the bad stuff. One person’s harmful content is another person’s legitimate argument. And that’s where things get tricky. Over-regulating content risks dulling the edges of public conversation until everything becomes polite, safe, and—let’s be honest—a bit bland.

The internet has always been a bit chaotic. That’s part of what makes it so powerful. Free expression isn’t just about saying things that are agreeable or polite. It’s also about having the freedom to be wrong, to challenge ideas, or to say something that not everyone likes. If platforms start tightening their rules too much, we could end up with a version of the internet where only the safest, most inoffensive voices remain.

Over the next six months, we’ll probably see platforms adjusting their policies to align with Ofcom’s guidance. Algorithms might become more conservative, moderators more cautious, and some content that previously had a place might quietly disappear. The internet could start to feel "safer," but it might also feel less open, less spontaneous, and, dare I say it, a bit dull.

Bottlenecks don’t last forever, but they change the way we travel. If these new rules lead to a bottleneck in online conversation, we might find ourselves looking back at the old internet—flawed though it was—and missing its freedom and unpredictability. Sometimes, a bit of chaos is a small price to pay for an open road.