Policy Brief n.º 03/2026/EN
The Digital Services Act in the Context of Democratic Backsliding
March | 2026
Patrick Sawyer | IPRI-NOVA
DOI: https://doi.org/10.23906/pb03/2026/en
Resume
This policy paper examines the role of the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA) within the broader context of democratic backsliding in the United States and efforts by the second Trump administration to undermine the new Regulation. As a regulatory tool created with the limited mandate to mitigate the spread of illegal content on Very Large Online Platforms (VLOPs) such as hate speech, CSAM, manipulative business practices, content posted by terrorist groups, and other illegal material posted by third-parties, the DSA has become an issue of geopolitics as the Trump administration takes aim at the Regulation, calling it a tool for “mass censorship.” This analysis traces how authoritarian actors, such as those in the United States, weaponize VLOPs in order to spread authoritarian disinformation, hate speech, conspiracy theories, and other radicalizing content that undermine democratic and pluralistic institutions. It examines the ongoing attempts by the Trump administration, and allied owners of VLOPs such as X, to pressure the EU Commission to not enforce the DSA and the risk these threats hold for digital sovereignty over European territory and domestic backsliding. It touches on the specific provisions of the DSA and its passage and path to full implementation in Portugal and the broader EU. This paper argues that surrendering to American pressure fundamentally undermines Europe’s ability to project its own democratic discourse and enforce its own laws.
