Page 32 - ARUBA TODAY

A32 FEATURE
Monday 13 august 2018
Tech giants still stumbling in the social world they created

By BARBARA ORTUTAY he said.
AP Technology Writer That’s easier said than
NEW YORK (AP) — Who done, of course. But it’s
knew connecting the world particularly difficult for
could get so complicated? huge tech companies to
Perhaps some of technolo- balance public goods such
gy’s brightest minds should free speech with the need
have seen that coming. to protect their users from
Social media bans of con- harassment, abuse, fake
spiracy theorist Alex Jones news and manipulation.
have thrust Facebook, Especially given that their
YouTube, Twitter and oth- business models require
ers into a role they never them to alienate as few of
wanted — as gatekeep- their users as possible, lest
ers of discourse on their they put the flood of adver-
platforms, deciding what tising money at risk.
should and shouldn’t be “Trying to piece together a
allowed and often anger- framework for speech that
ing almost everyone in the works for everyone — and
process. Jones, a right-wing making sure we effectively
provocateur, suddenly enforce that framework —
found himself banned from This photo combo of images shows, clockwise, from upper left: a Google sign, and apps for Twitter, is challenging,” wrote Rich-
most major social platforms Spotify and Facebook. YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Spotify and other sites are finding themselves ard Allan, Facebook’s vice
this week, after years in in a role they never wanted, as gatekeepers of discourse on their platforms, deciding what should president of policy, in a
which he was free to use and shouldn’t be allowed and often angering almost everyone in the process. blog post Thursday. “Every
them to promulgate a va- Associated Press policy we have is grounded
riety of false claims. ing to build the largest au- said technology analyst Tim call mass shootings hoaxes, in three core principles: giv-
Twitter, which one of its ex- diences possible, slice and Bajarin, president of con- white nationalists who or- ing people a voice, keep-
ecutives once called the dice their user data and sultancy Creative Strate- ganize violent rallies and ing people safe, and treat-
“free speech wing of the make big profits by turning gies. “That was priority one men who threaten women ing people equitably. The
free speech party,” remains that information into lucra- and controlling content with rape and murder. frustrations we hear about
a lonely holdout on Jones. tive targeted advertise- was priority two. It should While the platforms may our policies — outside and
The resulting backlash sug- ments. have been the other way not have anticipated the internally as well — come
gests that no matter what The dark side of untram- around.” influx of hate speech and from the inevitable tension
the tech companies do, meled discourse, the think- That all got dicier once the meddling from foreign between these three prin-
“there is no way they can ing went, would sort itself election of President Don- powers like Russia, North ciples.”
please everyone,” as Scott out as online communities ald Trump focused new at- Korea and China, Baja- Such tensions force some
Shackelford, a business law moderated themselves, tention on fake news and rin said, they should have of the largest corporations
and ethics professor at Indi- aided by fast-evolving organized misinformation acted more quickly once in the world to decide, for
ana University, observed. computer algorithms and, campaigns — not to men- they found it. “The fact is instance, if banning Nazis
Facebook’s Mark Zucker- eventually, artificial intelli- tion the fact that some of we’re dealing with a brave also means banning white
berg, Twitter’s Jack Dorsey gence. the people grabbing these new world that they’ve al- nationalists — and to figure
and crew, and Google’s “They scaled, they built, new social-media mega- lowed to happen, and they out how to tell them apart
stewards of YouTube gave they wanted to drive rev- phones were wild conspir- need to take more control if not. Or whether kick-
little thought to such conse- enue as well as user base,” acy theorists who falsely to keep it from spreading,” ing off Jones means they
quences as they built their need to ban all purveyors
empires with lofty goals of false conspiracy theo-
to connect the world and ries. Or whether racist com-
democratize discourse. ments should be allowed if
At the time, they were the they are posted, to make a
rebels aiming to bypass the point, by the people who
stodgy old gatekeepers — received them.
newspaper editors, televi- “I don’t think the platforms
sion programmers and oth- in their heart of hearts
er establishment types — would like to keep Alex
and let people talk directly Jones on,” said Nathaniel
to one another. Persily, a professor at Stan-
“If you go back a decade ford Law School. “But it’s
or so, the whole idea of difficult to come up with a
speech on social media principle to say why Alex
was seen as highly positive Jones and not others would
light,” said Tim Cigelske, be removed.”
who teaches social media While most companies
at Marquette University in have policies against “hate
Wisconsin. There was the speech,” defining what
Arab Spring. There were constitutes hate speech
stories of gay, lesbian and can be difficult, he added.
transgender teens from Even governments have
small towns finding support trouble with it. One coun-
online. try’s free speech is another
At the same time, of course, In this April 19, 2017, file photo, Alex Jones, a right-wing radio host and conspiracy theorist, arrives country’s hate speech,
at the courthouse in Austin, Texas.
the companies were rac- Associated Press punishable by jail time.q