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FACEBOOK HAS ANNOUNCED that it will ban content that denies or distorts the Holocaust, describing the move as its latest effort to free the platform of hate.
The social media giant, which has long been criticised for not doing enough to disempower Holocaust deniers and other hate groups, said it would redirect users who search for terms about the Holocaust or its denial “to credible information off Facebook”, according to a company statement.
“Our decision is supported by the well-documented rise in anti-Semitism globally and the alarming level of ignorance about the Holocaust, especially among young people,” said a statement by Facebook vice president of content policy Monika Bickert.
Bickert cited a survey that showed almost a quarter of young adults in the United States saying the Holocaust was a myth or had been exaggerated.
Bickert described the steps on Holocaust denial content as part of its stepped-up effort to address hate after the company earlier banned more than 250 white supremacist groups, took down 22.5 million pieces of hate speech in the second quarter and banned anti-Semitic stereotypes.
She cautioned that the change will take time.
“Enforcement of these policies cannot happen overnight,” Bickert said. “There is a range of content that can violate these policies, and it will take some time to train our reviewers and systems on enforcement.”
Facebook’s move was applauded by Anti-Defamation League Chief Executive Jonathan Greenblatt, who called the action “a big deal.”
“This has been years in the making,” Greenblatt said on Twitter. “Glad it finally happened.”
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What is important is that those groups most at risk from covid 19 should avail of the vaccine when it is offered to them, for 80% of the population who get the virus , this will be a mild to moderate infection but those in a high risk category need to protect themselves, this will allow all of us to return to normal living in time.
@Honeybee: I am pro vaccine but this is not clear as if yet the effectiveness and safety of the vaccines on the vulnerable groups especially those with immunity issues as none of these patients were included in the trial. Vulnerable patients have a right to ask questions as side effects or ineffectiveness could be catastrophic for them
tl;dr – if you are already poorly, you will fare worse with Covid.
Who would have guessed
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