On Friday, in a private message to Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg, Selena Gomez wrote, "Facebook and Instagram are being used to spread hate, misinformation, racism, and bigotry." The 28-year-old singer and actress, who has 193 million followers on Instagram and more than 77 million on Facebook, posted the message on Instagram Stories, along with a plea to put an end to misinformation and hate speech.
"Facebook and Instagram are being used to spread hate, misinformation, racism, and bigotry," she wrote. "I am calling you both to HELP STOP THIS. Please shut down groups and users focused on spreading hate speech violence and misinformation. Our future depends on it."
On Wednesday, celebrities like Kim Kardashian, Jamie Foxx, Kerry Washington, Sacha Baron Cohen, Mark Ruffalo, Dwyane Wade Katy Perry promoted #StopHateforProfit by taking a break from social media. In her message, Gomez noted the upcoming presidential election, writing, "We cannot afford to have misinformation about voting. There has to be fact-checking and accountability. Hope to hear back from you ASAP."
Recently, Facebook software engineer Ashok Chandwaney quit the company after posting a scathing letter on Facebook’s internal employee network, which said, “I’m quitting because I can no longer stomach contributing to an organization that is profiting off hate in the US and globally.” The engineer blasted Facebook for allowing militia groups to advocate for a violent response to peaceful protests.
In the past, Facebook has been accused of playing an important role in the 2016 election of Donald Trump by disseminating false news reports and allowing the president’s campaign to target voters with disinformation. A couple of weeks ago, the company announced several steps to reduce “the risks of post-election confusion,” including not accepting new political advertisements a week before the election.
Last week, a civil rights group, Muslim Advocates, said that since 2015 it had alerted Facebook and its top executives 10 times to "militias, white nationalists, and other hate groups" asking the social-media network "to direct harassment and violence at vulnerable communities." The group claims they were repeatedly ignored.
Source: Hollywood Reporter