Online repercussions of social media platforms lessening moderation during the Trump era are now being questioned due to their response to the murder of activist Charlie Kirk, prompting a shift in tone regarding censorship.
In the wake of the tragic assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, social media platforms are facing increased pressure to police content and address the issue of radicalization on their platforms. Republican House Representative Anna Paulina Luna has urged Meta, X (formerly Twitter), TikTok, and other platforms to take down videos related to Kirk's death. This call to action follows a similar request from US Representative James Comer, chairman of the House Oversight Committee, who has asked the CEOs of Discord, Steam, Twitch, and Reddit to testify at an October hearing on the radicalization of users on online platforms. The suspected killer of Kirk, Tyler Robinson, reportedly took responsibility for the crime in a message on the chat platform Discord. However, it is unclear what changes, if any, Republicans might seek to implement regarding free speech and social media. Meta is currently applying a warning screen to graphic videos related to the shooting and age-gating them to adults. X, on the other hand, has scaled back its fact-checking and content moderation programs after tech billionaire Elon Musk's purchase of the platform in 2022. The response to the social media reaction to Kirk's death marks a shift for some of the political right, which until recently railed against the alleged censorship of posts about various topics. Utah Governor Spencer Cox called social media a 'cancer' that played a 'direct role' in recent assassinations or attempted assassinations. Louisiana Representative Clay Higgins promised to use his influence to 'mandate an immediate ban for life' of posts or commenters who belittled Kirk's assassination. ABC suspended TV host Jimmy Kimmel's show 'indefinitely' over a monologue about the suspect in Kirk's murder. The chair of the Federal Communications Commission, Brendan Carr, suggested ABC could face regulatory action over Kimmel's remarks. US Attorney General Pam Bondi pledged to use her Department of Justice to crack down on 'hate speech'. However, she later clarified that officials would focus on violent threats and incitement. Dave Karpf, an associate professor at George Washington University, suggests the reaction to Kirk's death has more to do with the changing political landscape under former President Trump than principles about content moderation or speech. Trump has offered mixed signals on the issue of social media content moderation. In an effort to ensure compliance with their rules and code of conduct, Reddit reached out to moderators to ensure they understand and abide by the platform's rules. Meta also announced the end of its third-party fact-checking initiative in January, saying its previous content moderation efforts had 'gone too far'. As the investigation into Kirk's assassination continues, it remains to be seen what changes, if any, will be made to social media policies and content moderation practices. The ongoing debate surrounding free speech and the role of social media in shaping public discourse is likely to continue in the coming months.
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