From the beginning, those of us who worked in the traditional American media and understood its importance to our democracy, recognized that the rise of social media platforms (and “citizen journalism”) on Facebook, Google and other platforms was a threat. Not only did Facebook and Google siphon off a majority of advertising dollars that supported traditional media organizations, but their profitability was also enhanced because they did not need gatekeepers to make judgments about their “content.” They have tried to rely on more algorithms to control their content. They did not need editors and their salaries.
But the rise of social media platforms with no gatekeepers has had disastrous effects, as seen in how the New Zealand gunman live streamed his vicious assault on two mosques. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern got it absolutely right in this remark: “We cannot simply sit back and accept that these platforms just exist and that what is said on them is not the responsibility of the place where they are published. They are the publisher, not just the postman.”
I don’t know that this issue can be legislated. Facebook keeps saying it has hired more “monitors,” but clearly not enough. The big platforms are taking a beating in terms of their public image and different lawmakers in various countries are making threatening noises. At the end of the day, it seems to me that journalists have to also keep beating the drums and create an environment in which Facebook and Google find it in their self-interest to exert a measure of control. It will be expensive because they will need “editors” for every language and nationality. That’s what real news organizations did before they were economically eviserated. Democracies around the world are now suffering the consequences.
