oppn parties Facebook Accused Of Pandering To The BJP In Violation Of Its Own Policies

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Facebook Accused Of Pandering To The BJP In Violation Of Its Own Policies

By Sunil Garodia
First publised on 2020-08-17 16:17:38

About the Author

Sunil Garodia Editor-in-Chief of indiacommentary.com. Current Affairs analyst and political commentator. Author of Cyber Scams in India, Digital Arrest, The Money Trap and The Human Hack

A report in the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) has alleged that Facebook did not apply its hate-speech policy strictly in India in the case of several members of the BJP as it feared that it would spoil its good relations with the ruling dispensation and harm its business interests in the country. Facebook has denied the charges and said that its policies are implemented regardless of the political affiliations of the alleged offender. But the denials will have to be taken with a pinch of salt after the damning disclosures in the WSJ report.

The WSJ report has quoted sources from within Facebook - current and former employees - to allege that a senior company officer in India said that they would have to look the other way in the case of violation of hate-speech policy by BJP leaders and workers as otherwise it "would damage the company's business prospects in the country". Reacting to the report, a Facebook spokesperson said that the company prohibits "hate speech and content that incites violence and we enforce these policies globally without regard to anyone's political position or party affiliation. While we know there is more to do, we're making progress on enforcement and conduct regular audits of our process to ensure fairness and accuracy."

With its reach and potential to influence people, Facebook can be a highly dangerous platform if it chooses to play favourites. Its alleged role in the Cambridge Analytica scandal where its database was said to be used to influence voters in the US elections in 2016 to favour Donald Trump, is fresh in public memory. Facebook must remember that playing favourites is a double-edged sword - while it may bring in short term gains, it can also cause heavy long term losses if people start going against it for its bias. It must remember that not all Indians are BJP supporters and those who are not will definitely be put off by the attempt to play favourites.

The government must, regardless of the fact that the current beneficiaries are members of its party, take a strict stand if the allegations are true. Hate speech has the potential to ignite passions and start riots. With social media becoming all-pervasive in the pandemic era when people are not able to meet physically, platforms like Facebook have an added responsibility to be fair and equitable in their policies. Further, with online election campaigning becoming the norm, at least for the next 6 to 9 months, social media platforms must not allow any political party to have a free run.

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