3 ms·
When, I don't know, +90% of public discourse is flowing through a handful of platforms, and they are cutting out what they don't like, teasing out what they do
by preordained 6y ago
When, I don't know, +90% of public discourse is flowing through a handful of platforms, and they are cutting out what they don't like, teasing out what they do like a gardener sculpting shrubbery to present some customized, skewed version of the public consciousness...yah, it's a problem.
I think the publisher vs platform provisions do need to be revisited. I think small niche sites and forums could be allowed more latitude in how they curate, but at a certain scale a higher expectation of neutrality should be enforced. Really, just limited to taking down obscenity, porn, gore, etc. If any more grey curating is applied (i.e. these platforms attempting to deem for themselves what is "hate speech") there should significant penalties for not applying it generally; for instance, taking down a Trump tweet addressing BLM for being deemed racist in some way, and yet giving a pass to others saying "white loves don't matter" or the like.
A few giant platforms can't be allowed to be the grand arbiters of what is acceptable public speech and what isn't. The influence they have is scary.
- johnny22 6y agoand you can define obscenity? or is it "I know it when i see it" again. There is no neutral.
- preordained 6y agoFine, porn or gore or profanity, list of slurs. If you want to begin curating other nebulous concepts like "hate speech" at scale, it should be explicitly defined and you should held to being clear when you are acting upon violations for it, and responsible for applying your policy broadly and not cherry picking. "There is no neutral" so we'll just make it up as we go is just a ridiculous pass that big platforms are exploiting to the ill of society.
- johnny22 6y agothat's what we've always done, make it up as we go along, since societies and language change. I doubt you'll find it easy to really split what's porn and what is art. or even what gore vs art is.