Social media, extremism and fears we are losing the online war

worse, not better, with MPs delivering an unusually withering assessment of the tech industry: “There is a great deal of evidence that these platforms are being used to spread hate, abuse and extremism. That trend continues to grow at an alarming rate but it remains unchecked and, even where it is illegal, largely unpoliced. The evidence suggests that the problem is getting worse.”

And so it appears to be. The Facebook Files revealed by the Guardian this week gave a genuinely unprecedented insight into the way Facebook is trying to tackle online extremism, and the muddle it has got itself into.

While Facebook executives seem genuinely hurt by accusations they are not doing enough, and are offended by the idea they do not take these matters seriously, the fact remains that it is really struggling to contain the problem.

Its moderators told the Guardian they face a “mission impossible” trying to keep the site clean. There is so much content, and it is so easy to defy the rules, that Facebook cannot stop hateful material being published.

In one month last year, moderators escalated more than 1,300 posts with potential links to terrorism. Moderators told us this was really the tip of the iceberg. Videos of how to make bombs and how to create suicide vests are out there if you want to find them.

Facebook told the Guardian it had soft- ware that stops some images from being seen and is investing heavily in artificial intelligence. That is regarded as another way of disinfecting the site.

But the truth for Facebook is that any number of moderators, and any number of algorithms, might not be enough. The terrorists, and their supporters, have been smart and they adapt quickly. One moderator told the Guardian: “It always feels like we are one step behind.”

(Courtesy The Guardian, UK)