Nadler Says Trump, Feds Need to Devote More Resources to Online-Related Hate Issues
The U.S. needs to devote the “proper” federal resources to the rise of white nationalism, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., told us, citing what he called a lack of attention from President Donald Trump. It’s obvious why Tuesday’s hearing (see 1904040064), in which Facebook and Google are expected to testify, is needed, Nadler said. The hearing will convene at 10 a.m. in 2141 Rayburn.
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The U.S. has a growing problem “with hate speech, with acts of violence against Jews, against other people, against Muslims, against other minority people, the majority of which comes from white nationalists, from the right,” Nadler said. “The president never talks about it, and it’s time we focused some attention on it.” The FBI and other agencies haven’t committed the right level of resources to the problem, he said.
There’s no place for hate speech, said Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio. “We’re hoping that Facebook, Google and the others in the tech industry are going to appropriately deal with it.” It’s possible questions about anti-conservative bias will come up at the hearing, Jordan said.
Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, had pointed words for online platforms, after critics blasted industry for failing to remove hateful content originating from the alleged gunman in the recent New Zealand mass shooting. “I’m not aware that [platforms] are doing anything meaningful. I’m serious -- I don’t know what they’re doing,” Schatz said. Platforms have “unending faith” in their algorithms, and when an algorithm fails, “which seems to be about weekly,” tech companies offer solutions through coding, he said. “The problem is they refuse to provide human supervision to the platform because they think humans are dumb and processes that involve code are smart. Until they fix their mindset to human supervision, this problem’s not going away.”
It’s not accurate to say tech companies are addressing the problem only with algorithms, said Information Technology and Innovation Foundation Vice President Daniel Castro. Facebook announced the hiring of more than 30,000 people for safety and security, Castro said. “We don’t blame the police for not preventing every crime. Instead, we hold them accountable for doing what is reasonable.” Castro also noted industry’s difficult position: If it moderates too heavily, it’s accused of political bias; if it moderates too lightly, it’s enabling extremists.
It’s not possible for humans to review the vast amount of content posted on platforms, NetChoice Vice President Carl Szabo said. Citing company transparency reports, he said 500 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute, and there are 500 million tweets and 2.5 billion Facebook user posts per day. “To suggest that humans could possibly review that doesn't match the reality and magnitude of the situation,” he said.
Both the alleged New Zealand attacker, Brenton Tarrant, and the alleged Pittsburgh synagogue mass shooter, Robert Bowers, were actively using social media at the time of the incidents, said Simon Wiesenthal Center’s Rabbi Abraham Cooper. Tarrant was active on the white nationalist-linked network Gab, which Cooper said didn’t have the same community standards as Facebook and Twitter. Social media is the frontline of marketing for every product and idea in the world today, Cooper said. With extremists, no one did it better than ISIS and now it's happening domestically, he said. The hearing should be an appropriate part of an overall review of the situation, he said.
Facebook confirmed it’s sending Public Policy Director Neil Potts, who will appear for the House hearing, to testify at the Senate Constitution Subcommittee hearing Wednesday, as well.