Facebook Ad Boycott Organizers Say No Progress On Hate Speech

Facebook ad boycott organizers say no progress on hate speech

Organizers of a Facebook ad boycott vowed to press on with their campaign, saying the social network's top executives had failed to offer meaningful action on curbing hateful content

Washington, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 8th Jul, 2020 ) :Organizers of a Facebook ad boycott vowed to press on with their campaign, saying the social network's top executives had failed to offer meaningful action on curbing hateful content.

At a virtual meeting that included Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg, the #StopHateForProfit coalition leaders "didn't hear anything... to convince us that Zuckerberg and his colleagues are taking action," said Jessica Gonzalez of the activist group Free Press, a coalition member.

Rashad Robinson, president of the activist group Color of Change, told reporters on a conference call the meeting was "a disappointment." Robinson said the executives "showed up to the meeting expecting an A for attendance," but that "we did not get answers to questions we put on the table." The meeting was seen by Facebook as an opportunity to hear from boycott organizers and "reaffirm" a commitment to combating hate on the platform, a spokesperson told AFP.

"They want Facebook to be free of hate speech and so do we," the spokesperson said, noting steps the social network has taken to ban white supremacist groups and fight interference with voting or the census.

"We know we will be judged by our actions not by our words and are grateful to these groups and many others for their continued engagement.

" The meeting took place during a boycott which has grown to nearly 1,000 advertisers pressing for more aggressive action from Facebook on toxic and inflammatory content which promotes violence and hate -- spurred by the wave of protests calling for social justice and racial equity.

"This isn't over. We will continue to expand the boycott until Facebook takes our demands seriously. We won't be distracted by Facebook's spin today or any day," Gonzalez said.

Anti-Defamation League CEO Johnathan Greenblatt said of the meeting: "We saw little and heard just about nothing." Greenblatt said the organizers had 10 specific demands for Facebook but "got no commitment or clear outcomes to any of them."Some of the activists say Facebook should do more to curb disinformation from political leaders including President Donald Trump, and limit his comments which critics say promote violence and divisiveness.

Among posts which particularly roiled activists was Trump's comment during widespread protests that "when the looting starts, the shooting starts," which critics said was an incitement to violence.