Early last week, Donald Trump (currently banned from Facebook and Twitter) announced he will be launching his own social media network- Truth social. In a statement issued through Trump Media & Technology Group on Tuesday, the former president said his network would combat “self-righteous scolds and self-appointed arbiters” who decide what people “think, say, share, and do.”

Why is this an issue? Freedom of speech (an American term) is one of the crucial features of a democratic society, it is the belief that everyone has the right to express thoughts freely. It also means the opportunity to participate in controversial discussions and debates. Famous socialism critic George Orwell writes “If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear”.

It goes without saying that all people are different and, thus, their views on the changes occurring in the surrounding world differ. As seen through movements such as ' Black Lives Matter, 'Me Too' and 'Stop Asian Hate' social progress cannot be achieved without conflict solving and decision making. The availability of the different opinions contributes to arriving at the best solution.

But what if the things people are saying are harmful to specific groups of people or society?
Although freely sharing views and opinions has had its benefits, history has shown us that when powerful figures are given a large platform, dangerous things can happen. An example of this is Donald Trump. In January 2021 he tweeted to over 88 million followers his views on the election which resulted in riots in the Capitol that consequently lead to serious injuries.

During the world cup, many football 'fans' used social media platforms to spread racial abuse towards Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho & Bukayo Saka. Although the racist behaviour was widely condemned, the racial abuse came offline and resulted in violent attacks towards black people.

The aforementioned are examples of when freedom of speech on social media invades human rights, including intellectual property rights, the right to reputation, and others.

It is also very important to acknowledge that we cannot trust every view, opinion or even platform that we engage with online. For example, within the first 30 mins of Trump's announcement, hackers had gained access to a private version of the social network and wrote expletive-laced rants aimed at Mr Dorsey and inquired about the whereabouts of the former first lady Melania Trump. Images of the hackers’ handiwork were circulated on other social media platforms.
This is an example of how easy it is to encourage and spread fake news that will inevitably impact members of society. 

Should social media platforms step in?

Many have called on social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Youtube to make more effort when it comes to monitoring online activity. Activists have asked that messages and posts should be filtered and blocked before being sent or posted if they contain racist or discriminatory material. Similarly that users of these platforms should be subject to an improved verification process that (only if required by law enforcement) allows for accurate identification of the person behind the account".

Most social media forms have responded to these concerns by committing to suspend users who use their platform to insight hate, harm or violence towards specific groups or society. For example, Twitter has committed to banning hate speech that could “promote violence against or directly attack or threaten other people on the basis of race” or other protected characteristics. Users can be penalised for “targeting individuals with repeated slurs, tropes or other content that intends to dehumanise, degrade or reinforce negative or harmful stereotypes about a protected category”, the company’s public rules state.

However, for most this is not enough! Intervention in the dissemination of the information should be before they are sent out to their targeted victims. 

What can you do?

The debate on what social media platforms should and should not censor is ever going. Similarly, societies norms and values continue to shift throughout time, which means what could be right to say in one era, could be a huge offence later down the line.

However, if you do witness online abuse whether targeted at a colleague, a friend a stranger, or yourself here are a few tips that could help: 

1) Be cautious 
As noted above, most things that are shared online aren't censored and therefore aren't always true. Before sharing news with friends, take the time out to fact check what you are reading.

2) Report it to the platform
If come across false or hateful information, there is no harm in reporting the message to the platform itself. Reporting these messages will prompt moderators to decide whether they should be removed.

3) Report it to the police
It is also possible to report online hate material to the police through True Vision, a reporting tool owned by the National Police Chiefs’ Council. The police will assess it and if it does not meet the threshold for a criminal offence it is recorded as a “hate incident”.

4) Support anti-discrimination organisations

Organisations fighting hate crime and discrimination, as well as supporting victims and witnesses of such crimes, play a huge role in raising awareness, educating and stopping such incidents from happening. Stop Hate UK is an example organisation, they provide resources, as well as reporting tools and support for those who have been subjected to hate crime. 

You can support organisations by donating, volunteering, and sharing information on your own social media pages.