Facebook to teach how to beat hate speech

As part of its move to stop the spread of hate speech online, Facebook plans to teach British non-profit groups how to combat extremism.

Facebook has revealed new plans to tackle extremism by educating British charities and other organisations on how to counter hate speech.

The social media giant has launched the Online Civil Courage Initiative (OCCI), which the company said would act as a forum for charities and other non-profit organisations to share their experiences of extremism and develop "best practices" to tackle the issue both on and offline.

The initiative's founding partners include the Jo Cox Foundation, set up in memory of the murdered MP, as well as other anti-hate groups from the Jewish and Muslim communities.

The OCCI will be used to share experiences on facing hate speech and extremism, Facebook said, with the aim of the scheme to create awareness campaigns and better "counter-speech" to tackle extremism.

Internet companies have come under increased scrutiny from the British government over their role in the spread of hate speech.

Home Secretary Amber Rudd said the government was "not frightened" to issue sanctions to companies that failed to remove extreme material.

Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg said of the company's practices: "There is no place for hate or violence on Facebook.

"We use technology like AI to find and remove terrorist propaganda and we have teams of counterterrorism experts and reviewers around the world working to keep extremist content off our platform.

"Partnerships with others - including tech companies, civil society, researchers and governments - are also a crucial piece of the puzzle."

The OCCI has already launched in Germany and France.


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2 min read
Published 23 June 2017 2:56pm
Source: AAP


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