Facebook in fresh controversy over Holocaust denial

Facebook found itself embroiled anew in controversy Thursday after chief executive Mark Zuckerberg argued the leading social network should not filter out posts denying the Holocaust.

The comments by Zuckerberg drew fierce criticism and appeared to undermine Facebook's latest effort to root out hate speech, violence and misinformation on its platform.

In an interview with tech website Recode on Wednesday, Zuckerberg said that while Facebook was dedicated to stopping the spread of fake news, it would not filter out posts just on the basis of being factually wrong -- including from Holocaust deniers and the conspiracy theory website Infowars.

"I'm Jewish, and there's a set of people who deny that the Holocaust happened," he said in the interview.

"I find that deeply offensive. But at the end of the day, I don't believe that our platform should take that down because I think there are things that different people get wrong. I don't think that they're intentionally getting it wrong."

Critics quickly lashed out at Zuckerberg over the comments, saying these kinds of comments can incite hatred and violence.

"Holocaust denial is the quintessential 'fake news,'" said Abraham Cooper of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, a rights group named for a famed Nazi hunter.

"The Nazi Holocaust is the most documented atrocity in history, allowing the canard of Holocaust denial to be posted on Facebook, or any other social media platform cannot be justified in the name of 'free exchange of ideas.'"

Zeynep Tufekci, a University of North Carolina professor who follows social media said on Twitter: "Harder to find a group of people more *intentional* about "denying" an atrocity in order to pave the way for more violence than holocaust-deniers."

Zuckerberg later emailed Recode to clarify his comments, stating that if something is spreading and rated as false by the site's fact checkers, "it would lose the vast majority of its distribution" on user feeds and that "if a post crossed line into advocating for violence or hate against a particular group, it would be removed."

- Distraction from new effort -

The episode was an unwelcome distraction for Facebook after it held a media briefing on the company's new policy to remove bogus posts likely to spark violence.

The new tactic being spread through the global social network was tested in Sri Lanka, which was recently rocked by inter-religious violence over false information posted on the platform.

Jennifer Grygiel, a social media professor at Syracuse University, said that despite Facebook's ramped up efforts it needs far more people to weed out posts that can be harmful on a platform with some two billion users worldwide.

Zuckerberg "needs to figure out content moderation and he can't do it without more people. This has life and death implications" Grygiel told AFP.

"I don't think he understand the decisions he makes has real-world implications for democracy."

Facebook has been blamed for failing to curb incitations to violence against the Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar and its WhatsApp messaging service has been implicated in lynchings and mob violence in India.

The latest controversy comes with Facebook seeking to repair the damage from misinformation spread on the platform during the 2016 US election campaign and the hijacking of private data by consulting firm Cambridge Analytica as it worked on Donald Trump's campaign.

At the same time, Facebook has been accused by some politicians in Washington of bias in filtering out conservative voices.

Some analysts said Facebook faces a difficult task in seeking to filter out misinformation and calls to violence and conform with regulations on hate speech in various countries while still remaining an open platform that allows free speech.

"Facebook is in over its head but nobody has a full answer," said Tufekci in a tweet.

Fellow North Carolina professor Daniel Kreiss responded by saying "the issues are *really* challenging -- a big problem is that FB never thought about any of the implications of its platform, data, speech policies, or misinformation before 2016, even as many of us were raising concerns."

source: news.abs-cbn.com

6 Africans injured in 'racial' drive-by shooting spree in Italy

MACERATA, Italy - A shaven-headed far-right supporter suspected of wounding 6 Africans Saturday in brazen drive-by shootings in central Italy was arrested, as the country's interior minister said "racial hatred" had prompted the attack.

After the morning assault in the town of Macerata, the suspect got out of his car, allegedly made a fascist salute with a tricolor Italian flag draped over his shoulders and shouted "Viva Italia", or "Long Live Italy", and "Italy for Italians," media reports said.

The wounded included 5 men and 1 woman from Ghana, Mali and Nigeria, the Agi news agency said. It came a day after a Nigerian man was arrested in the town over the gruesome murder of a teenage Italian girl.

Interior Minister Marco Minniti said the attack was part of a culture "of right-wing extremism with clear reference to fascism and Nazism" and deplored that the sole link between the victims was "the color of their skin".

He said the "criminal act" was "prepared in advance".

The man allegedly opened fire in 8 areas in the town and also targeted the office of the center-left Democratic Party in a 2-hour terror spree in the sleepy town of 43,000 people, press reports said.

"Six people were injured and all of them are foreigners," said town mayor Romano Carancini. Police confirmed in a tweet that "the wounded persons were of foreign nationality", adding that the "presumed author of the attack is Italian".

One victim was seriously injured in the thorax, press reports said. The other 5 had lesser injuries.

A Nigerian man who was shot in the thigh while buying cigarettes on the street, telling a television channel from his hospital bed that he was in great pain, adding: "It's very serious."

Television footage showed the suspect being arrested at the town's war memorial. Police also posted a photo of the capture.

Authorities identified the suspected shooter as Luca Traini, 28. He is a member of the far-right anti-immigration Northern League party and had run in local elections last year.

Media reports said police found a gun in the man's vehicle, a black Alfa Romeo.

"Someone who shoots is a delinquent, irrespective of the colour of his skin," said Northern league chief Matteo Salvini, in full campaign mode ahead of legislative elections on March 4.

"I'm in a hurry to be in government to bring back security, social justice and serenity to Italy," he said. 

'HATE WILL NOT DIVIDE US' 

Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni meanwhile made a pitch for unity, saying: "Hate and violence will not divide us."

The attack comes a day after a Nigerian asylum-seeker and drug dealer was arrested in Macerata over the gruesome killing of an 18-year-old Italian woman whose dismembered body was discovered in suitcases earlier this week.

Police found the clothes of the victim, Pamela Mastropietro, in the house of the 29-year-old Nigerian as well as a bloodstained knife.

However, no official link has been made between the 2 incidents.

Italians head to the polls in national elections next month, with immigration shaping up to be a key issue.

The country is a favored landing point on Europe's southern coastline for migrants making the perilous journey across the Mediterranean, often aboard unseaworthy boats, to enter the continent.

But 2017 was a turning point for Italy: the country went from large-scale arrivals in the first 6 months to a sharp drop-off, thanks to controversial agreement between the EU and Libya.

Some 119,000 people landed in Italy last year, down 35 percent on 2016.

The Northern League is part of a populist coalition tipped to do well in the elections.

According to opinion polls, the alliance between ex-prime minister Silvio Berlusconi's center-right Forza Italia (Go Italy), the post-fascist Fratelli d'Italia (Italian Brothers) and the Northern League leads with more than 35 percent ahead of the March 4 vote.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Thousands march in US against Trump presidency

NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES -- Chanting "Not my president" and "love trumps hate," thousands of demonstrators took the streets in cities across the United States at the weekend to protest against President-elect Donald Trump, who they say threatens their civil and human rights.

Police in Portland, Oregon, where a protester was shot early on Saturday but not seriously injured, said they arrested more than 20 people late on Saturday after protesters tossed burning flares and bottles at them and refused orders to disperse.

The biggest rallies were in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, where organizers said they wanted to build on the momentum after several nights of protests triggered by the real-estate mogul's surprise win in Tuesday's presidential election.

In New York, several thousand protesters marched peacefully up Fifth Avenue past its glitzy store fronts, some already bearing Christmas decorations, before filling the streets at the foot of Trump Tower, the president-elect's skyscraper home.

"We're horrified the country has elected an incredibly unqualified, misogynist, racist on a platform that was just totally hateful," said Mary Florin-McBride, 62, a retired banker from New York who held a sign reading, "No Fascism in America."

There were also demonstrations in Chicago and Los Angeles, where several thousand protesters gathered beneath MacArthur Park's palm trees holding placards including "Dump Trump" and "Minorities Matter," before marching toward downtown.

Some waved American, Mexican or rainbow flags. Holding a "Keep Love Legal" sign, 25-year-old gay Los Angeles resident Alex Seedman called Trump a fascist and feared he would repeal marriage equality.

Evelyne Werzola, 46, an immigrant from South Africa, said she had seen what a police state could do.

"I've seen people oppressed. And this is like a heartbreak of the American dream for me," Werzola said. "So I'm fighting to keep what America has stood for alive."

In Portland, the protester who was shot had been taking part in a march across the city's Morrison Bridge. Portland police said four people had been detained in connection with the shooting, and were believed to be criminal gang associates.

Police also said some protesters attacked a film crew in the city on Saturday night and at least two people were assaulted. They began making arrests when the crowd refused to disperse.

PROTESTS LARGELY PEACEFUL

Since Trump's victory, demonstrators in several cities have decried the Republican's campaign promises to restrict immigration and register Muslims, as well as allegations that the former reality-TV star sexually abused women.

Dozens of protesters have been arrested and a handful of police injured.

The demonstrations since the election have been impromptu affairs, quickly organized, with weekend protests expected to swell in size.

Trump initially denounced the protests, saying they were "incited" by media, but later praised the demonstrators' "passion for our great country."

"We will all come together and be proud!" he said on Twitter.

Many voters were shocked by the outcome, after polls predicted a Clinton victory.

Some 60.3 million people voted for Trump, fewer than the 60.8 million who chose Clinton. But Trump's strong showing in swing states including Michigan meant he triumphed in the Electoral College which ultimately picks the president.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Five arrests, two injured at neo-Nazi rally in Sweden

STOCKHOLM - Five people were arrested and two were injured in Stockholm on Saturday in clashes between police and anti-fascists at a rally by Swedish neo-Nazis, police said.

An AFP photographer said thousands of anti-fascists gathered in central Stockholm to protest against a rally being held by the Nordic Resistance Movement (NMR).

Police placed a protective cordon around the NMR rally, which numbered hundreds of people, the photographer said.

Police said they made five arrests among anti-fascists who tried to break through police lines before the demonstration eventually dispersed in the afternoon.

Spokesman Lars Bystroem told TT news agency that a policeman was hit by a demonstrator, and a second individual was injured in circumstances that were unclear.

The NMR, set up in 1997, promotes an openly racist and anti-Semitic doctrine, and press commentators had questioned the wisdom of authorizing Saturday's rally, given the likelihood of violence.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com