Enviros are demanding big tech treat ‘climate disinformation’ like hate speech

Bronson Winslow, DCNF

A coalition of environmental advocacy groups has requested that the CEO’s of major social media platforms stop the spread of “climate disinformation” by censoring user posts, according to a Tuesday letter.

Addressed to the CEOs of Facebook, TikTok, Google, YouTube, Twitter and Pinterest, the letter claims that climate disinformation should be censored because it “undermines” the government’s ability to efficiently and effectively respond to the climate. The coalition asserted that social media companies are directly responsible for “amplifying and perpetuating” disinformation and should be completely transparent to show the “exact extent” of damage done.

In other news: enviros are asking all the big social platforms to treat “climate disinformation” like other harmful content. (This seems savvier than just berating them for not doing enough on moderation.)

No comments yet from the platforms. https://t.co/T6ufag2vkl

— Mark Bergen (@mhbergen) October 4, 2022

Social media platforms will be forced to follow the guidelines of the coalition following the approval of the Digital Services Act (DSA), according to the letter. The coalition urges the platforms to “fulfill their obligations” and agree to its terms before the DSA takes effect.

The platforms are urged to “commit to including climate disinformation as a separately-acknowledged category in its reporting and content moderation policies in and outside of the EU,” the letter said. “More specifically, we urge platforms to commit to recognizing climate disinformation as a specific reason within the statement required under DSA Article 15(1), and include data on content moderation decisions related to climate disinformation as stated under Article 23.”

The platforms “owe it to their users and the planet” to stop amplifying climate disinformation that undermines the coalitions’ ability to combat the climate crisis, the letter said. The letter ended by informing each CEO that a written response and signature is required after conforming to the coalitions’ new standards.

Friends of The Earth did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.

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