Guterres warns of online hatred and violence
Feb 25, 2025
Geneva [Switzerland], February 25: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed concern on Monday about the tone and content of some statements on social media, amplified by a scaling back of monitoring efforts by US platforms.
"Recent rollbacks on social media fact-checking and content moderation are re-opening the floodgates to more hate, more threats and more violence," Guterres said at the opening of the UN Human Rights Council session in Geneva.
In January for example, Facebook's parent company Meta abolished fact-checking in the United States, where it had previously been used to expose misinformation. Social media, at best, provide a platform for the exchange of ideas and respectful debate, Guterres said. At worst, they were an arena for heated conflicts and blatant ignorance. (DPA)
Source: Qatar Tribune
