Martin Fertmann works within the second research program of the Leibniz-Institute for Media Research | Hans-Bredow-Institut (HBI) on
"Regulatory Structures and the Emergence of Rules in Online Spaces". His research focuses on commercial content moderation, platform regulation and their respective compatibility with international human rights standards.
Next to having published numerous contributions within his research focus, he has presented his work at multiple conferences in Germany and abroad and co-chaired conferences on transparency in tech regulation and on internet governance and international human rights. He has participated in a research sprint at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society (Harvard University) and has conducted research visits to LIP6 in Paris (Sorbonne University and the French National Center for Scientific Research), as well as to the Norwegian Centre for Human Rights (University of Oslo). He is a Fellow in the 2022 cohort of the Transatlantic Digital Debates program (Global Public Policy Institute, Berlin and New America’s Open Technology Institute, Washington) and a member of the EU COST Action Global Digital Human Rights Network.
Before pursuing his PhD, Martin studied law in Hamburg and Beijing, with a focus on media law. During his studies, he worked as a research associate for multiple renowned international law firms and volunteered with the University of Hamburg’s Cyber Law Clinic.
Besides his work at the HBI, he holds a fellowship at the Centre for Law in the Digital Transformation at the University of Hamburg and is a doctoral candidate at the Albrecht Mendelssohn Bartholdy Graduate School of Law, where he pursues a dissertation on institutional and procedural requirements for the content moderation practices of social media platforms under international human rights law.
Within the HBI, Martin serves as elected representative of the Institute’s Junior Researchers and doctoral candidates, alongside Verena Albert.
