Skip to comments.
Tech layoffs ravage the teams that fight online misinformation and hate speech (schaudenfreud alert)
CNBC ^
| May 26, 2023
| Hayden Field and Jonathan Vanian
Posted on 05/28/2023 8:08:32 PM PDT by DoodleBob
...Across the tech industry...wide swaths of people tasked with protecting the internet's most-populous playgrounds are being shown the exits. The cuts come at a time of increased cyberbullying...and as the spread of misinformation and violent content collides with the exploding use of artificial intelligence.
...
Twitter effectively disbanded its ethical AI team in November and laid off all but one of its members, along with 15% of its trust and safety department, according to reports. In February, Google cut about one-third of a unit that aims to protect society from misinformation, radicalization, toxicity and censorship. Meta reportedly ended the contracts of about 200 content moderators in early January. It also laid off at least 16 members of Instagram's well-being group and more than 100 positions related to trust, integrity and responsibility, according to documents filed with the U.S. Department of Labor.
...
"I don't think we should reflexively think that having fewer trust and safety workers means platforms will necessarily be worse," said Iyer... "However, many of the people I've seen laid off are amongst the most thoughtful in rethinking the fundamental designs of these platforms, and if platforms are not going to invest in reconsidering design choices that have been proven to be harmful — then yes, we should all be worried."
...
Newly unemployed workers in those fields from across the social media landscape told CNBC that there aren't many job openings in their area of specialization as companies continue to trim costs. One former Meta employee said that after interviewing for trust and safety roles at Microsoft and Google, those positions were suddenly axed.
An ex-Meta staffer said the company's retreat from trust and safety is likely to filter down to smaller peers and startups that appear to be "following Meta in terms of their layoff strategy."
(Excerpt) Read more at cnbc.com ...
TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: bigtech; censors; censorship; dissent; freedomofspeech; freespeech; google; linguisticgymnastics; misinformation; safety; schaudenfreud; trust; trustandsafety; waronfreedomofspeech
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-20, 21-30 last
To: Ge0ffrey
Funny you should ask....I spent a few weeks lady winter looking for an industrial standard of misinformation. There is none.
Now, dictionary.com says “Misinformation is false information that is spread, regardless of intent to mislead...So, disinformation is misinformation that is knowingly (intentionally) spread.”
Thus, it comes down to INTENT. But intent isn’t always visible or discernible. That leaves arbitration up to the Godz who got fired.
21
posted on
05/29/2023 5:33:15 AM PDT
by
DoodleBob
( Gravity’s waiting period is about 9.8 m/s²)
To: DoodleBob
They can learn to mine coal.
22
posted on
05/29/2023 5:58:25 AM PDT
by
Colorado Doug
(Now I know how the Indians felt to be sold out for a few beads and trinkets)
To: DoodleBob
All those layoffs...
And I’m still banned on Twitter.
Wonder how many inherent conservatives are still banned on Twitter.
Guess censorship doesn’t require that many jobsworths after all, does it...
23
posted on
05/29/2023 6:00:19 AM PDT
by
mewzilla
(We will never restore the republic if we don't first secure the ballot box.)
To: mewzilla
Not sure how inherent got in there...
24
posted on
05/29/2023 6:01:00 AM PDT
by
mewzilla
(We will never restore the republic if we don't first secure the ballot box.)
To: Colorado Doug
No progressive has yet been exterminated in the war on coal
25
posted on
05/29/2023 6:02:31 AM PDT
by
bert
( (KWE. NP. N.C. +12) Juneteenth is inequality day )
To: joma89
These people should learn to code. Oh wait...Nicely Done!
26
posted on
05/29/2023 7:38:02 AM PDT
by
Navy Patriot
(Celebrate Decivilization)
To: joma89
They probably couldn’t code worth a lick.
27
posted on
05/29/2023 7:39:20 AM PDT
by
dfwgator
(Endut! Hoch Hech!)
To: AdmSmith; AnonymousConservative; Arthur Wildfire! March; Berosus; Bockscar; BraveMan; cardinal4; ...
- EU Furious After Elon Musk Pulls Twitter Out of Online Censorship Programme [05/28/2023]
- Socialist Spain Behind Push to Ban Private Messaging in EU, Leaked Docs Show (no end-to-end encryption for you, just like China) [05/28/2023]
- Spain swings right in local and regional elections [05/29/2023]
- Spain's prime minister calls snap election after party takes a beating in regional vote [05/29/2023]
- China deletes 1.4 million social media posts in crackdown on 'self-media' accounts [05/28/2023]
- While Biden Embraces China, China Hacks America [05/28/2023]
- Dallas School District Installs AI Surveillance to Monitor Student Behavior [05/28/2023]
- Dingell: I'm 'Really' 'Annoyed' by Cuts to IRS Staff in Debt Deal, But 'There Is Nothing I Can Do About It' [05/28/2023]
- Too many being sent to jail for minor offenses - Justice Minister [Ireland] [05/28/2023]
- How Greece Got Its Groove Back Supply-side economics revives the country, and the center right [05/28/2023]
- Americans estimate average family of four needs minimum $85,000 annual income to get by: poll [05/28/2023]
- High-school sweethearts with good jobs, a baby on the way and a $600,000 budget can't find a house after 2 years of hunting. 'It is just so demoralizing, depressing, and defeating' [05/28/2023]
- Gross Domestic Income GDI Suggests the US Is In Recession Right Now (While Uniparty Agrees In Principle To Avoid Debt Default) [05/28/2023]
28
posted on
05/29/2023 9:30:10 AM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
(NeverTrumpin' -- it's not just for DNC shills anymore -- oh, wait, yeah it is.)
To: DoodleBob
Wonder if the government contracts for suppressing free speech dried up?
29
posted on
05/29/2023 9:32:35 AM PDT
by
IamConservative
(I was nervous like the third chimp in line for the Ark after the rain started.)
To: Navy Patriot
Meta reportedly ended the contracts of about 200 content moderators in early January. It also laid off at least 16 members of Instagram's well-being group and more than 100 positions related to trust, integrity and responsibility, according to documents filed with the U.S. Department of Labor.Dumping control freak commies in exchange for freedome of speech? Sounds like a good trade off.
30
posted on
05/30/2023 3:50:01 AM PDT
by
GOPJ
(American companies: YOUR Ad Agency needs to look like America NOT like a San Francisco Gay bathhouse)
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-20, 21-30 last
Disclaimer:
Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual
posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its
management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the
exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson