Reconciling Data Protection and Free Speech? A Comparative European Analysis

presents an empirical overview of both the scope and strength of derogations provided for public freedom of expression in the Data Protection laws of all European Economic Area (EEA) states. The data demonstrates the radically divergent and inconsistent nature of the law in this area and raises pressing questions which should be addressed in the revision of the European Data Protection framework now underway. The talk was the keynote address of the OxPILS Conference 'The 'Right to be Forgotten' and Beyond' held on 12 June 2012. This Conference was the culmination of 'Mending the Tangled Web? Information Privacy 3.0', a series which was generously made possible with funding from a Joint Programme between the European Union and the Council of Europe. (The views expressed are those of the individual speakers only). For full details please see http://www.csls.ox.ac.uk/conferences/oxpilsconference2012/.