U.S. SENATE News:

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sens. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), and Jacky Rosen (D-NV) pressed Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Meta’s failure to address antisemitic content on its platforms and potentially promote antisemitism through its artificial intelligence models. Specifically, the senators highlight how a rise in antisemitic content can be linked to the recent changes in community standards and content moderation practices, which were announced by Meta in January. Additionally, in the letter, the senators press Meta to disclose its policies and procedures to address antisemitism on their platforms and combat hate speech.

“In recent months, there has been a nearly fivefold increase in antisemitic behavior on Meta’s platforms. The rise in antisemitic content has been linked to the recent changes in community standards and content moderation practices, which were announced by Meta in January,” the senators wrote.

“We are deeply concerned about the increase of hate speech and antisemitic content on Meta’s platforms. Platforming antisemitic speech normalizes it and breeds further hateful speech. Additionally, online hateful conduct can and often leads to real-world violence,” the senators continued.

“Meta has an outsized role in its ability to combat antisemitism and we encourage Meta to consider how its policies and practices can be a force to unite communities and foster understanding rather than promote hate speech,” concluded the senators.

The full text of the letter is available here.