After holding itself out as a bastion of (semi) free speech, or at least the most hands-off in Silicon Valley, Facebook reversed course on Tuesday amid an advertiser exodus thanks to the Stop Hate for Profit campaign.
In addition to policing whatever their definition of ‘hate speech’ from now on and vowing to ‘get better at removing hateful content,’ CEO Mark Zuckerberg and COO Sheryl Sandberg will be meeting with leaders from groups including the NAACP and the Anti-Defamation league, which organized Stop Hate for Profit.
Launched by civil rights groups three weeks ago, the Stop Hate for Profit campaign, which has a broader aim of curbing hate speech, white supremacy and misinformation on Facebook, has struck a national nerve. Hundreds of companies including top brands Unilever, Ford and Pfizer have pulled advertising from Facebook in July. –USA Today
“Being a platform where everyone can make their voice heard is core to our mission, but that doesn’t mean it’s acceptable for people to spread hate. It’s not,” Sandberg wrote in a Tuesday blog post, adding that on Wednesday Facebook would release its long-anticipated civil rights audit which began two years ago.
Sandberg said that while the audit had a “profound effect” on the company’s culture, they won’t be “making every change they call for,” but will “put more of their proposals into practice soon.” – READ MORE
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