LeBron James has expressed concern about the sudden increase in hate speech and racist remarks on Twitter since the news of Elon Musk’s acquisition was confirmed. The basketball icon responded to tweets about the increase in hate speech and racist posts and said he hopes Musk’s team takes the reports seriously.
Musk has repeatedly sparked concerns about his relaxed stance on content moderation and has previously criticized Twitter for banning controversial public figures such as Donald Trump and Kanye West. However, the SpaceX founder has confirmed that Twitter will form a content moderation council to make major content decisions or restore accounts.
Since the news of Musk’s acquisition, several racist posts and hate speech have gone viral on Twitter, but the platform has since taken down some of the posts. Celebrities such as Elliot Higgins and organizations such as Amnesty International have also expressed concern about the rise of hate speech and racism on the platform.
Read on to learn more.
LeBron James Rises In Hate Speech On Twitter Since Elon Musk Bought It
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Musk completed his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter on Friday, sparking the emergence of numerous anonymous user accounts that made posts full of racist remarks, such as the N-word and hate speech. follow The Washington PostThis account made a post testing the limits of the platform’s moderation policy amid a change in ownership.
Twitter user Philip Lewis later tweeted about the hate post, citing research from the Network Contagion Research Institute (NCRI) that “over the past 12 hours, use of the N-word has increased nearly 500% from the previous average.”
I don’t know Elon Musk and, tbh, I don’t care who owns twitter. But I will say that if this is true, I hope he and his people take this seriously because this is scary AF. Many unqualified people say hate speech is free speech. https://t.co/Sy0jvXIBnC
— LeBron James (@KingJames) October 29, 2022
James quotes Lewis tweets, wrote, “I don’t know Elon Musk and, tbh, I don’t care who owns Twitter. But I will say that if this is true, I hope he and his people take this seriously because this is scary AF. So many undeserving people say hate speech is free speech.”
There Are Concerns About Elon Musk’s Attitudes Toward Content Moderation
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The 51-year-old Musk has repeatedly sparked concerns that he is too relaxed about content moderation, as the billionaire has previously criticized Twitter’s former leadership for banning the accounts of controversial public figures such as Donald Trump and Kanye West.
However, shortly before his Twitter purchase was confirmed, Musk issued a public notice to advertisers, assuring them that he had no intention of turning the social media platform into a “free-for-all hellscape, where anything can be said without consequence!”
Twitter will form a content moderation council with diverse viewpoints.
No major content decisions or reinstatement of accounts will occur before the council convenes.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 28, 2022
One of Musk’s first tweets after the purchase of the platform was confirmed read, “The bird is free.” Later in the day, he shared that Twitter would create a “content moderation council with diverse viewpoints.” musk explained“No major content decisions or account reinstatements will occur before the council convenes.”
Some Hate And Racist Posts Trend After Elon Musk Takes Over Twitter
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Like The Washington Post noted, some posts filled with hate speech and racial slurs, such as the N-word, received thousands of likes and retweets after news of Musk’s acquisition was confirmed. One tweet read, “Elon now controls twitter. Drop the racial slurs,” while another said, “When you can’t be banned on Twitter anymore.”
Some Twitter users blamed Musk for giving credence to trolls to tweet their hateful messages. One user wrote that “trolls feel blatantly emboldened by Elon to threaten murder and use racist, anti-Semitic and homophobic slurs.” The Washington Post also confirmed that several hateful tweets were taken down by the platform on Friday.
Users Share Concerns About Rise In Hate Posts
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While some public figures banned from Twitter, such as Donald Trump and Marjorie Taylor Greene, celebrated Musk’s acquisition, several celebrities and organizations expressed concern about an increase in hateful and racist posts since the news was confirmed.
👋 @elonmusklet that sink in. pic.twitter.com/ZR03kvk7tN
— Amnesty International (@amnesty) October 28, 2022
Amnesty International referenced one of Musk’s recent posts, tweeting, “Twitter is toxic, let it permeate.” The international NGO also points out that women, especially those from marginalized groups, often find themselves easy targets for hateful comments and abuse.
Elliot Higgins, founder of Bellingcat, also posted about his concerns. He tweeted“It seems like a bit of a communication issue for Twitter that Musk’s acquisition has sparked a wave of offensive tweets from people who now think it’s okay thanks to Musk, and no one seems to know if the reporting system is still being used by Twitter, or if it’s just racist and free abusive to all.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
