Hate speech is defined as anything hateful directed against anyone over issues of race, colour, religion, descent or national or ethnic origin
The move is hoped to prevent the use of social media by terrorist groups
The internet is a powerful tool, and the ability to spread information so quickly to such a huge audience can often have unfortunate consequences.
Social networking sites have often been used by terrorist organisations to relay messages and entice hatred against certain individuals or groups.
But now technology companies – including Twitter, Facebook and YouTube – have come together to try and combat this, by signing a code of conduct to combat hate speech online.
Social networking sites have often been used by terrorist organisations to relay messages and entice hatred against certain individuals or groups. But now tech giants have come together to try and combat this, by signing a code of conduct to combat hate speech online
The European Union has reached an agreement with some of the world’s biggest social media firms on ways to combat the spread of hate speech online.
Under the terms of a code of conduct, the firms have committed to ‘quickly and efficiently’ tackle illegal hate speech directed against anyone over issues of race, colour, religion, descent or national or ethnic origin.
Among the measures agreed with the EU’s executive arm, the firms have said they will establish internal procedures and staff training to guarantee that a majority of illegal content is assessed and, where necessary, removed within 24 hours.
The US firms insisted that following the EU rules would not compromise freedom of speech.
They have also agreed to strengthen their partnerships with civil society organisations who often flag content that promotes incitement to violence and hateful conduct.
The European Commission and the firms have also agreed to support civil society organisations to deliver ‘anti-hate campaigns.’