12 July 2021
THE IRISH NEWS — Social media companies must start requiring users to verify their identity when opening an account to end the idea that platforms are “consequence-free” areas for abuse, industry experts have said.
Following their Euro 2020 final defeat to Italy, England players Bukayo Saka, Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho were all targeted by abusive posts in the wake of their missed penalties in the shoot-out.
Facebook and Twitter condemned the abuse as “abhorrent”, saying they have taken steps to remove the posts and encouraged people to use filters to block out harmful content, but experts said more substantial action is now required to combat the ongoing problem.
Dr Bill Mitchell, director of Policy at BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, the industry trade body, said people should be asked to verify their identity in order to use such platforms, and the IT industry believes this could be implemented without compromising personal privacy. […]
Police open probe as three [black] England players who missed penalties in loss to Italy face racist abuse
Facebook and Twitter say they are being proactive in removing harmful content
12 July 2021
MARKET WATCH (ASSOCIATED PRESS) — British police opened investigations Monday into the racist abuse of three Black players who[se] missed penalties in England’s shootout [resulted in the team’s] loss to Italy in the European Championship final.
The Metropolitan Police condemned the “unacceptable” abuse of Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka, and said they will be investigating the “offensive and racist” social-media posts [aka speech] published soon after Italy won Sunday’s shootout 3-2 following a 1-1 draw. A mural of Rashford on the wall of a café in south Manchester was also defaced with graffiti in the wake of the match.
The racist abuse, which was condemned as “unforgiveable” by England coach Gareth Southgate, has led to calls for social media companies, such as Facebook and Twitter, to do more in hunting down the perpetrators of the abuse [aka thought crimes]. […]
This is ridiculous. It’s fanatical football fans (if it’s legit) for crying out loud. My guess it’s just laying the narrative foundation for continued, increased, speech suppression…(with ever increasing penalties)