Now US Democrats go after FB, Twitter, YouTube
In a bid to combat the spread of misinformation in the wake of January 6 Capitol Hill riots, several Democratic lawmakers have sent letters to Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, directing them to make sweeping changes to stop the radicalisation of their platforms.
image for illustrative purpose
San Francisco: In a bid to combat the spread of misinformation in the wake of January 6 Capitol Hill riots, several Democratic lawmakers have sent letters to Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, directing them to make sweeping changes to stop the radicalisation of their platforms.
Only hours after gaining full control of Congress, Representatives Anna Eshoo (California) and Tom Malinowski (New Jersey), along with several other members, sent out letters to the CEOs of the three tech giants.
"The horrific damage to our democracy wrought on January 6 demonstrated how these social media platforms played a role in radicalising and emboldening terrorists to attack our Capitol," Eshoo said in a statement on Thursday.
"These American companies must fundamentally rethink algorithmic systems that are at odds with democracy."
According to The Verge, Facebook and YouTube declined to comment and a Twitter spokesperson said "they had received the letter and planned to respond."
The lawmakers accused the companies of using certain product features and algorithms that boost content that evokes extreme emotions as a means of increasing engagement, pointing out specific features they want to see changed on each platform.
