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Facebook's latest slate of changes won't satisfy civil and human rights groups demanding accountability from the platform. Here's why, a thread https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/06/26/facebook-hate-speech-policies/
My first time engaging with Facebook was shortly after the killing of Korryn Gaines by the Baltimore County Police Department in 2016.
The inciting incident was police serving a warrant to Gaines over failing to appear in court for a traffic ticket http://data.baltimoresun.com/news/korryn-gaines/
The inciting incident was police serving a warrant to Gaines over failing to appear in court for a traffic ticket http://data.baltimoresun.com/news/korryn-gaines/
During this 6-hour standoff, Korryn Gaines posted videos to her Facebook and instagram accounts until Baltimore County Police asked Facebook to take down her accounts, which they did.
After that police entered her apartment, shot and killed her. https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/08/03/488500830/during-fatal-standoff-police-asked-facebook-to-deactivate-womans-account
After that police entered her apartment, shot and killed her. https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/08/03/488500830/during-fatal-standoff-police-asked-facebook-to-deactivate-womans-account
While Facebook made some changes after pressure from groups like @mediajustice and @ColorOfChange, the issues affecting people of color have only magnified since then. https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/crime/bs-md-co-facebook-letter-korryn-gaines-20160822-story.html
There are major problems with the spread of misinformation that has spread and been targeted against Black people and people of color on social media platforms. https://www.splcenter.org/hatewatch/2020/04/17/hate-groups-and-racist-pundits-spew-covid-19-misinformation-social-media-despite-companies
And as @BrandingBrandi points out in a recent report about misinformation in Black communities "tech companies have often failed in their moral obligation to prevent posts and coordination on their platform that can have deadly consequences" https://shorensteincenter.org/canaries-in-the-coal-mine/
Advertising has been another place where users of color are being discriminated against as this @TeamUpturn report detailed last year. https://www.wired.com/story/facebooks-ad-system-discrimination/
Then there's the spread of white supremacy on mainstream platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Last year Facebook made changes to ban white nationalist from its platform. https://about.fb.com/news/2019/03/standing-against-hate/
But those changes are not working, why? Because the bigger issue behind all the problems at Facebook is the way its algorithms are hard wired to amplify content. https://www.techtransparencyproject.org/articles/white-supremacist-groups-are-thriving-on-facebook
In short, amplifying fear-based content is good for Facebook's business. It's not a novel idea, just like news reporting on crime in the 90s, it's the "if it bleeds it leads" editorial choice of the 21st century. https://science.sciencemag.org/content/359/6380/1146
And the thing is, Facebook's top brass have consciously known about this. https://www.wsj.com/articles/facebook-knows-it-encourages-division-top-executives-nixed-solutions-11590507499
Now this just covers some of the issues in the U.S., not to mention what is happening globally. Here's one helpful breakdown of Facebook in India by @EqualityLabs https://www.equalitylabs.org/facebookindiareport
While Facebook is making changes to its platform, they cannot stop the bleeding (in some cases literal) by placing a band aid on the problem.
This brings me to my roots as a community organizer. My first job out of college was as a tenants rights organizer in Minnesota.
One of my earliest mentors was Sal Miranda who ran a community organizer training program in Minneapolis. Every cohort of organizers he taught, he'd share the story of the parable of the drowning babies.
In short the story of the drowning babies was a metaphor for how to tackle societal problems.
I'd argue that Facebook's changes over the years are merely picking at the edges of the problem. You will not root out racism by labeling posts or taking down content. You have to tackle the source.
And that fundamentally is about where power resides at Facebook.
I was taught that power is centered around organized money, organized ideas and organized people.
I was taught that power is centered around organized money, organized ideas and organized people.
Lets talk organized money. Mark Zuckerberg is worth over $70 billion. And he has a 10-1 voting power on Facebook's board. https://www.businessinsider.com/facebook-zuckerberg-shareholder-vote-board-chair-position-2020-5
Now to organized ideas. Facebook's content algorithm is not designed to foster connection or build a global community despite Facebook's aspirations. In short, success is measured by engagement. https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2019/8/13/20802068/epstein-conspiracy-theory-clintonbodycount-psychology
And while human content moderation can try to auto-correct for the mistakes of algorithms, in a global pandemic Facebook is relying more on machines than people. https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/03/23/facebook-moderators-coronavirus/
Now to organized people. Coalitions like @changeterms are demanding real change from Facebook. And real change means addressing who has the power, and how content is spread. Changes short of that will only disappoint.
I started this thread talking about #KorrynGaines. It's a story I come back to when I think about Facebook. She turned to Facebook for safe harbor and it did not provide that to her.
If it can ever be safe will depend on who Facebook believes it's accountable to.
If it can ever be safe will depend on who Facebook believes it's accountable to.
