After Christchurch massacre, Jacinda Ardern insists Facebook has ‘more work to do’ despite its attempts to curb white nationalism and hate speech
- Ardern said the goal was to limit harmful content ‘while preserving a free, open and secure internet’
- Australia has warned social media executives they could be jailed for failing to remove extremist material
When making the announcement, the California-based company did not specifically reference the March 15 Christchurch atrocity that claimed 50 lives when a self-avowed white supremacist targeting Muslims opened fire in two mosques. But Ardern made it clear she believed it was a direct response to the criticism that has since been levelled at Facebook, which the accused gunman used to live-stream the attack.
“Arguably these categories should always have fallen within [Facebook’s] community guidelines on hate speech,” she told reporters. “But it’s positive that clarification has now been made in the wake of the attack here in Christchurch.”
She added “there’s more work to do” and said New Zealand would play an active role in the debate.
“There are lessons to be learned here in Christchurch and we don’t want anyone to have to learn those lessons over again,” she said.
