A day after US President Joe Biden declared “white supremacy is a poison”, referring to the racist motivation in the attack that killed 12 people in Buffalo, the New York State Attorney General announced that an investigation was opened into the responsibility of US President Donald Trump. case social networks.
Tolerance with hate speech has been one of the main criticisms of social networks that defend themselves using the argument of freedom of expression.
But the Buffalo case exposed them further, as Payton Gendron, who was responsible for the attack, live-streamed the action and mentioned in his manifesto the “white genocide” and “grand substitution” conspiracy theories that promote hatred for immigrants and people. colourful.
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Buffalo attack raises questions about the role of social media
Of the 11 people killed in the attack, 10 were black. The 18-year-old writer described himself as: The fascist and white nationalist expresses his hatred of blacks and minorities in an online manifesto.
The investigation into social media platforms, opened Wednesday, includes video streaming site Twitch, messaging platform Discord, and anonymous message board 4chan, which has been used to spread conspiracy theories because of their low moderation.
The prosecution was asked by New York Governor Kathy Hochul that social media platforms should be held accountable for putting engagement above public safety.
I posted a redirect @NewYorkStateAG Investigating the social media platforms that published the horrific attack in Buffalo and the theory of justified substitution.
Social media platforms should take responsibility and be held accountable for choosing participation over public safety.
— Governor Kathy Hochul (@GovKathyHochul) 18 May 2022
In a statement announcing the opening of the investigation, Attorney General Letitia James said:
“We have once again seen the real-world devastation from these dangerous and hateful platforms, and we will do everything we can to highlight this alarming behavior and take steps to ensure it never happens again.”
He said the investigation targeted Twitch, 4chan, 8chan and Discord platforms, but could include other tech platforms.
While none of the most popular ones such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and Twitter have been associated with crime, the posts allowed by academics and experts are pointed as a gateway for people who know conspiracy theories, and from there they file criminal complaints. switch to search dark web.
Buffalo: planning and displaying the attack on social networks
The Buffalo lawsuit led to a conviction for being broadcast live on Amazon’s Twitch, along with indications via social media that it was planned.
This occurred in another similar case in Christchurch, New Zealand, in 2019. The white supremacist gunman who killed 51 people in two mosques posted the scenes on Facebook.
In the Buffalo hack, Amazon said it removed the feed two minutes after it started, but the footage circulated on social media.
Signaling his intent to go into the background, the New York State Attorney said, “It is appalling and unacceptable for someone to post elaborate plans to render such an act of hate fruitless and then post it for the world to see.” case.
“As we continue to mourn and honor the lives stolen, we are taking serious steps to investigate the roles of these companies in this attack.”
Twitch and Discord reported that various law enforcement agencies investigating the footage, including the FBI and Department of Homeland Security, were collaborating with officials investigating the attack.
In a statement, Amazon’s platform highlighted the challenge of moderating live streams on their platform, noting that the company “continually evaluates policies, processes and products to keep communities safe.”
However, he seems to have tried to dodge responsibility by saying: “Biass and hatred do not happen in a vacuum. When we don’t create spaces where people feel empowered to raise their voices, they are enabled by a permissive culture.”
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Research implications on the Buffalo attack
Opening the investigation linking social media to the Buffalo attack is another challenge for platforms, with the potential to strengthen the seriousness of ongoing regulatory initiatives in the UK, EU and US.
However, the legal implications of its results may be limited. Eric Goldman, a professor at Santa Clara University, said in an interview with US public network NPR that the chances of an internet service being held responsible for a user’s hate crimes are “very, very low.”
He noted that courts’ orders to moderate a platform’s content count as a form of freedom of speech protected by the First Amendment to the US Constitution.
According to the professor, to overcome this, a prosecutor will have to show that a social media company has sufficient knowledge of the wrongdoings that violate the law.
The theory that motivated the Buffalo attack
The “great replacement” thesis has been reinforced by anti-immigration narratives supported by conservative politicians such as Donald Trump and the far-right.
The idea is that it would be an orchestrated plan to reduce the influence of whites in Western societies. This would be done both by encouraging immigration and by the low birth rate of the white population.
The most racist owes this plan to the Jews. In the US, the advocacy of Latin American immigrants by Democratic politicians is seen by conspiracy theorists as a “relocation” movement.
During his visit to the city of Buffalo on Tuesday, Joe Biden referred to a rally. In 2017, a white supremacist car drove into protesters in Charlottesville, Virginia, leaving one dead and 35 injured.
He said the case was one of his motivations for running for president, as he understands that US democracy is “in more danger than he has ever been in his life”.
In Buffalo, the president said the attacker belonged to a “hateful minority”. And he assured that “white supremacy will not have the last word.”
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source: Noticias
