美国国家公共电台 NPR With Facebook Ban On White Extremism, International Norms Apply To U.S.

 

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

Facebook was once praised for spreading free speech values, but with the company's ban on white extremist content, we have reached an inflection point. The world is pushing back with different values, which are now being imported by Facebook to the U.S. Here's NPR's Aarti Shahani.

AARTI SHAHANI, BYLINE¹: The worldwide ban goes into effect this week, and the move by Facebook, which is wrapped up in the U.S. culture wars, is actually the result of international pressure forcing the company's hand. Facebook says under the new rules, you cannot post in a celebratory way on its news feed or Instagram, I'm a white nationalist, but you can post, I'm a black nationalist. Some Americans find this outrageous² or...

JOHN SPIER: Ridiculous.

SHAHANI: John Spier, self-described libertarian Facebook user in central California.

SPIER: I feel like everyone should be able to have freedom of expression, even if they're an idiot. There's a lot of idiots in the world who say a lot of stupid things; we don't need to protect people from that.

SHAHANI: What racism³ is, who can be racist⁴ - it's a debate that's getting louder in the U.S. Spier believes that, while Facebook claims to be a neutral platform, the company is taking the liberal side.

SPIER: I know that the current popular mode of thought is that only white people can be racist, but I don't agree with that. I grew up as a minority white person in a largely Latino community, and believe me, I know what racism feels like.

SHAHANI: Facebook is an NPR sponsor. According to Facebook leaders and civil rights advocates, this issue is not about speech but safety. It's a well-documented fact. White extremists around the world are radicalizing men online, luring⁵ them into organized hate groups and promoting lone⁶ wolf acts of terror.

HEIDI BEIRICH: White supremacists are as much a global movement and interconnected - in other words, sharing ideas, sharing money, sharing tactics, sharing propaganda, visiting each other, et cetera, et cetera - just like you see with Islamic extremists.

SHAHANI: Heidi Beirich with the Southern Poverty Law Center has been making this point to Facebook for years. Dylann Roof, who murdered nine people in a church basement in Charleston, got radicalized through Google search. The white nationalist rally in Charlottesville that left three dead and dozens injured was organized on a Facebook page. The Christchurch shooter in New Zealand used Facebook Live, an incredibly powerful broadcast tool. Beirich says the company's latest move is in reaction to the disaster in New Zealand and pressure from law enforcement, particularly those in Europe who are worried about white extremist gunmen.

BEIRICH: That realization⁷ is dawning on the intelligence communities worldwide, and Facebook is hearing it from them.

SHAHANI: Facebook made the unusual move of adding Christchurch massacre⁸ footage to a terrorism database that had been focused on Islamic extremism. A Facebook spokesperson says the company will continue to add white extremist content to this database which a handful of tech giants share to censor⁹ the most violent content. Again, this is in the face of international pressure. Australia just passed a stringent¹⁰ bill that threatens social media employees with prison time if they don't remove violent content expeditiously¹¹. The United Kingdom is about to unveil legislation. Germany has passed tough hate speech laws that carry heavy fines. Heidi Beirich...

BEIRICH: The U.S. is behind the eight ball on this; Trump¹² doesn't seem to be interested in these issues at all. And I think Facebook is reacting to that in a good way, I would argue.

SHAHANI: About 90 percent of Facebook users are outside the U.S. Last week, Mark Zuckerberg called on governments around the world to create and effect a global standard for speech. That has never existed before. It's a long shot, and as Zuckerberg sees it, that's what needs to be engineered next. Aarti Shahani, NPR News.

1 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

2 outrageous   

adj.无理的，令人不能容忍的

参考例句：

• Her outrageous behaviour at the party offended everyone.她在聚会上的无礼行为触怒了每一个人。
• Charges for local telephone calls are particularly outrageous.本地电话资费贵得出奇。

3 racism   

n.民族主义；种族歧视(意识)

参考例句：

• He said that racism is endemic in this country.他说种族主义在该国很普遍。
• Racism causes political instability and violence.种族主义道致政治动荡和暴力事件。

4 racist   

n.种族主义者，种族主义分子

参考例句：

• a series of racist attacks 一连串的种族袭击行为
• His speech presented racist ideas under the guise of nationalism. 他的讲话以民族主义为幌子宣扬种族主义思想。

5 luring   

吸引，引诱（lure的现在分词形式）

参考例句：

• Cheese is very good for luring a mouse into a trap. 奶酪是引诱老鼠上钩的极好的东西。
• Her training warned her of peril and of the wrong, subtle, mysterious, luring. 她的教养警告她：有危险，要出错儿，这是微妙、神秘而又诱人的。

6 lone   

adj.孤寂的，单独的；唯一的

参考例句：

• A lone sea gull flew across the sky.一只孤独的海鸥在空中飞过。
• She could see a lone figure on the deserted beach.她在空旷的海滩上能看到一个孤独的身影。

7 realization   

n.实现；认识到，深刻了解

参考例句：

• We shall gladly lend every effort in our power toward its realization.我们将乐意为它的实现而竭尽全力。
• He came to the realization that he would never make a good teacher.他逐渐认识到自己永远不会成为好老师。

8 massacre   

n.残杀，大屠杀；v.残杀，集体屠杀

参考例句：

• There was a terrible massacre of villagers here during the war.在战争中，这里的村民惨遭屠杀。
• If we forget the massacre,the massacre will happen again!忘记了大屠杀，大屠杀就有可能再次发生！

9 censor   

n./vt.审查，审查员；删改

参考例句：

• The film has not been viewed by the censor.这部影片还未经审查人员审查。
• The play was banned by the censor.该剧本被查禁了。

10 stringent   

adj.严厉的；令人信服的；银根紧的

参考例句：

• Financiers are calling for a relaxation of these stringent measures.金融家呼吁对这些严厉的措施予以放宽。
• Some of the conditions in the contract are too stringent.合同中有几项条件太苛刻。

11 expeditiously   

adv.迅速地，敏捷地

参考例句：

• They have to be evaluated expeditiously, carefully with the patient fully UNDRESSED. 我看过许多的枪伤患者，但是就只有阿扁的伤口没有上述情形，真是天佑台湾。 来自互联网
• We will expeditiously facilitate trade transactions with the utmost professionalism. 我们会尽快贸易便利化的交易与最大的专业水平。 来自互联网

12 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。