Regulating online hate speech not 'censorship' says UN

The Manila Times

Regulating online hate speech not 'censorship' says UN  A UN spokesman says that calling 'efforts to create safe online spaces 'censorship' would 'ignore the fact that unregulated space means some people are silenced,' days after Meta scrapped its fact-checking program on Facebook and Instagram, citing censorship concerns. Ravina Shamdasani, spokesman for the UN human rights office, adds that this would particularly affect 'those whose voices are often marginalized.'  AFP VIDEO  Subscribe to The Manila Times Channel - https://tmt.ph/YTSubscribe  Visit our website at https://www.manilatimes.net     Follow us:  Facebook - https://tmt.ph/facebook  Instagram - https://tmt.ph/instagram  Twitter - https://tmt.ph/twitter  DailyMotion - https://tmt.ph/dailymotion    Subscribe to our Digital Edition - https://tmt.ph/digital    Check out our Podcasts:  Spotify - https://tmt.ph/spotify  Apple Podcasts - https://tmt.ph/applepodcasts  Amazon Music - https://tmt.ph/amazonmusic  Deezer: https://tmt.ph/deezer  Stitcher: https://tmt.ph/stitcher Tune In: https://tmt.ph/tunein   #TheManilaTimes #WorldNews #UN

Transcript

00:00Social media shapes society and has immense potential

00:29to enhance lives and to connect us.

00:31It also has demonstrated ability to fuel conflict,

00:35incite hatred and threaten safety.

00:38When at its best, social media is a place where people

00:41with divergent views can exchange, if not always agree.

00:45When we call efforts to create safe online spaces censorship,

00:50we ignore the fact that unregulated space means

00:53that some people are silenced,

00:55in particular those whose voices are often marginalized.

00:59At the same time, allowing hatred online limits free expression

01:03and may result in real-world harms.

01:07Freedom of expression thrives when diverse voices can be heard

01:10without enabling harm or disinformation.

01:14We will continue to call for accountability and governance

01:17in the digital space in line with human rights.

01:20This safeguards public discourse, builds trust

01:23and protects the dignity of all.

01:25On behalf of the UN, I think that, you know,

01:26we're constantly watching this space and evaluating it.

01:31Up till now, our posture has been that, you know,

01:34it's important for us to be present

01:36with fact-based, you know, information.

01:42And this is what we advocate for.

01:46You know, how this will evolve, right, is we don't know yet.

01:52Our role is to provide good science-based health information.

01:56And we need to provide that wherever people are looking for it.

02:01So we will, we are being across all platforms whenever possible.

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Transcript

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