Thursday 26 / December / 2024
Muscat: Social media platforms Facebook and Instagram announced Wednesday that they will block "praise, support and representation of white nationalism and separatism" from next week.
Facebook has been under pressure ever since a man live-streamed the Christchurch Mosque attack in New Zealand. He attacker claimed allegiance to white nationalism when questioned by the New Zealand police upon his capture.
The social media platform has pledged to improve its capabilities to identify and block content that has ties to terrorist organisations or are being spread by them.
It has said that it will now redirect all users who are searching for such content to a charity that deals with far-right extremism.
Facebook had previously allowed posts relating to white nationalism stating that it fell under freedom of speech and expression in America.
After the shootings in Christchurch, several world leaders like New Zealand PM Jacinda Ahern asked social media companies to take more responsibility for all the extremist content being posted on their platforms.
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said social networks were "the publisher, not just the postman,” in reference to their potential liability for the material shared on them.
