Anti-social behaviour

This might be a turning point in the history of social media. In the United States, Facebook has come under scrutiny for hiring a public relations firm to make claims against a critic, challenging the impression that the organisation is politically neutral. Here in the UK, the intelligence and security committee in Parliament has expressed its frustration with communications service providers that fail to stop their platforms from being “a safe haven for extremists and terrorists”. The committee notes that appeals to the better natures of these organisations, to encourage self-regulation, have failed.

Speaking of online bullying, the Duke of Cambridge has also argued that social media platforms can be both damaging and yet proud and defensive. Their ethics are increasingly under scrutiny. Notoriously, Facebook has been used to promote the auction of a 17-year-old South Sudanese bride; she was “won” on a bid of 500 cows, two luxury cars, $10,000, two bikes, a boat and some mobile phones. The post boosting the sale caused local and international horror. Yet Facebook took several days to remove it.

The committee suggests social media companies could be forced to manage their content better by hitting them in the wallet: Government should press businesses to use their “leverage” as advertisers. This newspaper would go further. We are campaigning for a new, statutory duty of care to be put on social media companies. They have become a vast, indispensable part of our markets and democracies, and yet still have the air of small start-ups operating out of college dormitories. This refusal to take full responsibility must change. It is time for social media platforms to grow up.