The awards of the 11th Hasan Özderin Manuscript Contest, organized by Akdeniz University Faculty of Law, were given to their owners. Our Private Law Master's Program student Abdülmecit Güldağı was among the winners of the article.
The article competition, in which law students studying at all state and private universities in Turkey and TRNC can participate, was held with the theme "Control of Social Media." The competition aims to contribute to students' practical use of the notion of law they have acquired academically and to improve the skills of those who specialize in law in writing their ideas through legal writing techniques.
Our Private Law Master's student Abdülmecit Güldağı, who won the second prize in the competition with his article titled "In the Context of Comparative Legislation and Transparency Reports: Obligations and Audit of Social Media Platforms," in his work, reveals what kind of balance is needed between social media platforms and users to protect the rights of both parties. Güldağı answered the questions we posed to her in the context of her article.
Could you please tell us about how the subject of the article started to emerge? What kind of problem did you want to examine?
Abdülmecit Güldağı: The subject of the article first shaped in my mind when I saw the article competition on social media control, organized by Akdeniz University Faculty of Law. Since I have been an active user of various social media platforms for years, I thought of addressing the issue through the supervision of these platforms. At the same time, the Digitial Services Act (DSA), which the European Union currently regulates, increased my curiosity on the subject.
Social media is a mechanism that provides interpersonal and mass communication. In this context, what kind of balances can be observed in the control of social media?
Abdülmecit Güldağı: In my work, I did not fully address the control of social media by a third party. The issue I have dealt with is mainly related to the regulations that will ensure the protection of the rights of social media users against platforms. For this reason, I think preventing the malicious use of interpersonal communication by platforms will be more effective.
Do you think there will be a constant need for new legal regulations with the intense communication shift to digital environments?
Abdülmecit Güldağı: Due to its structure, the law always has to keep up with social innovations and changes. Regulations are always needed to protect the rights of individuals. For this reason, I believe that there should be new regulations on this issue, as in every other issue.
Under which headings do you plan to concentrate your studies in law?
Abdülmecit Güldağı: I am planning to carry out my graduate and postgraduate studies in the field of labor law. In this area, the problems related to using social media by employees especially attract my attention.
