4chan Diplomacy: Britain’s Online Safety Act Meets Trump’s Legal Bat Signal

In a stirring display of international cooperation—or at least international confusion—Preston Byrne, a US First Amendment lawyer, declared he would sue the British regulator Ofcom for enforcing the UK's Online Safety Act against notorious troublemakers like 4chan, Gab, and Kiwi Farms. Byrne’s unusual request to the Trump administration to 'invoke all diplomatic and legal levers' almost sounds like calling in a superhero to save internet chaos. These sites, known as hotbeds of harassment, risk multimillion-dollar fines, and now apparently a transatlantic legal drama, showing that when it comes to online nastiness, borders are just a polite suggestion.

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Source: Theverge | Published: 8/23/2025 | Author: Tina Nguyen