Facebook, Twitter Urged to Fight Russian Disinformation in a Better Way

A bipartisan group of three US senators urged Meta’s Facebook, Twitter and Telegram to do a greater job of stopping Russian efforts to unfold Spanish-language disinformation concerning the invasion of Ukraine.

Senators Bob Menendez, chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, despatched the letters, dated Wednesday, together with Senators Tim Kaine, additionally a Democrat, and Bill Cassidy, a Republican.

In specific, the lawmakers requested the businesses to raised average Russia’s RT en Espanol and Sputnik Mundo.

“We … know that disinformation campaigns by Russian state media’s Spanish-language outlets targeted at Latin American and Caribbean audiences regularly reach Spanish-speaking communities in the United States, directly harming our national interests,” they stated within the three letters.

The letters have been despatched to Telegram Chief Executive Pavel Durov, Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal and Mark Zuckerberg, Meta’s CEO.

Representatives of Facebook and Twitter didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark whereas Telegram couldn’t be reached.

A gaggle of 21 US lawmakers despatched an analogous letter to Facebook in April.

Earlier this month, Britain proposed a brand new regulation that can require social media corporations to proactively deal with disinformation posted by overseas states resembling Russia, the federal government stated.

The regulation would deal with faux accounts on platforms resembling Meta’s Facebook and Twitter that have been arrange on behalf of overseas states to affect elections or court docket proceedings, the federal government stated.

The regulation is more likely to be handed throughout this parliamentary session by an modification to hyperlink the National Security Bill and Online Safety Bill, each of that are within the authorities’s present programme.

Communications regulator Ofcom will draw up codes of apply to assist social media corporations adjust to the regulation and can have the ability to challenge fines for infringement.

© Thomson Reuters 2022