Facebook offers up first-ever estimate of hate speech prevalence on its platform

20 Sept 23:51 Key points summarised by AI

Facebook disclosed its first-ever estimate of hate speech prevalence, reporting that 10 to 11 out of every 10,000 content views in Q3 2020 included hate speech.
The company took action on 22.1 million pieces of hate speech content during Q3, proactively identifying 95% of them, amidst intense scrutiny and an advertising boycott by civil rights groups.
While Facebook committed to an independent audit of its enforcement, critics argue the new metric lacks sufficient context, particularly regarding user-flagged content.
Beyond hate speech, Facebook also removed over 265,000 pieces of content for voter interference and updated its policy to ban Holocaust denial.
Improvements in AI and detection technologies boosted proactive content removal rates, despite ongoing challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic impacting its content review workforce.

Macron condemns those who 'sought to bring down the Republic' after rioting mars nationwide protests

19 Oct 12:56 Key points summarised by AI

President Macron condemned widespread rioting and looting during nationwide protests, blaming far-left activists and criminals for the "unrestrained violence" and vowing accountability for those who "sought to bring down the Republic."
Over 2,400 arrests were made as protests against rising living costs and poor school conditions escalated, causing extensive damage to public buildings and businesses in cities like Paris, Limoges (where City Hall burned), Marseille, and Lyon.
The unrest, which organizers hoped would revive the "yellow vest" movement, saw political leaders trade blame, with Macron instructing prefects to protect public buildings and potentially ban future protests to prevent further disorder.