The eSafety Commissioner of Australia issues a legal notice against Twitter. This notice demands information about the platform’s efforts to combat online hate.
Twitter has been facing a surge in hate-related complaints since Elon Musk took over in October 2022. The increase aligns with Twitter’s downsizing of its global workforce, including trust and safety teams, and its withdrawal from public policy in Australia. Musk’s “general amnesty” also saw the reinstatement of over 62,000 previously banned or suspended accounts, some with large followings.
eSafety Commissioner Legal Notice vs Twitter
eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant expressed dismay at Twitter’s apparent failure to enforce its own rules against hateful conduct. Twitter’s terms of use and policies continue to prohibit hate speech, complaints to eSafety and the continued visibility of such content indicate inadequate enforcement by the platform.
“We are seeing a worrying surge in hate online. eSafety research shows that nearly 1 in 5 Australians have experienced some form of online hate. This level of online abuse is already inexcusably high. But if you’re a First Nations Australian, you are disabled or identify as LGBTIQ+ you experience online hate at double the rate of the rest of the population,” she said.
“Twitter appears to have dropped the ball on tackling hate. A third of all complaints about online hate reported to us are now happening on Twitter.”
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Twitter’s shortcomings in addressing hate have not gone unnoticed globally. The US advocacy group GLAAD designated Twitter as the most hateful platform for the LGBTQ+ community in their recent social media index.
Research conducted by the UK-based Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) confirms this. The report revealed a significant increase in slurs against African Americans on Twitter since Musk’s takeover.
“We need accountability from these platforms and action to protect their users. You cannot have accountability without transparency. And that’s what legal notices like this one are designed to achieve,” the Commissioner said.
Twitter’s failure to respond to the notice could result in significant financial penalties. The penalties can amount to nearly $700,000 per day for ongoing breaches.