Social media giant pledges to do everything in its power to eradicate hate speech and misinformation from its platform
TikTok Inc. executives visited Israel and met with its president to address accusations that the social media giant was failing to clamp down on antisemitic and pro-Hamas content on its platform.
TikTok Inc. 高管访问了以色列并会见了以色列总统，以回应有关这家社交媒体巨头未能打击其平台上反犹太主义和亲哈马斯内容的指控。
Background
The meeting took place on Tuesday, February 6, 2024, against the background of a sharp increase in posts containing antisemitism, fake news, and anti-Israel hatred on the short-form video hosting service. The surge of hate speech and misinformation coincided with the October 7, 2023, massacre by Hamas, a terrorist group designated by the US and the EU, that killed 32 Israelis and wounded hundreds more in a series of rocket attacks and suicide bombings.
这次会议于 2024 年 2 月 6 日星期二举行，背景是短视频托管服务上包含反犹太主义、假新闻和反以色列仇恨的帖子急剧增加。仇恨言论和错误信息激增之际，美国和欧盟指定的恐怖组织哈马斯于 2023 年 10 月 7 日发生了大屠杀，该组织发动一系列火箭袭击和自杀式爆炸袭击，造成 32 名以色列人死亡，数百人受伤。
Meeting Details
Israeli President Isaac Herzog hosted members of TikTok’s global management at his official residence in Jerusalem. The participants included TikTok’s Michael Beckerman, vice president for public policy for the Americas, and Theo Bertram, vice president for government relations and public policy for Europe.
以色列总统艾萨克·赫尔佐格在耶路撒冷的官邸接待了 TikTok 全球管理层成员。与会者包括 TikTok 负责美洲公共政策的副总裁迈克尔·贝克曼 (Michael Beckerman) 和负责欧洲政府关系和公共政策的副总裁西奥·伯特伦 (Theo Bertram)。
Israeli social media researcher Tom Divon, from the Smart Family Institute of Communications at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, presented the company’s representatives with the findings of his research on antisemitism on the platform. The TikTok executives were presented with examples of hate-filled conspiracy theories and false information uploaded to the platform, among other things regarding Hamas’s barbaric October 7 massacre, as well as examples of Holocaust denial and more. The research noted that some content had been removed from the platform, however only after an extended period, while some had not been removed.
耶路撒冷希伯来大学智能家庭通信研究所的以色列社交媒体研究员 Tom Divon 向该公司的代表展示了他在该平台上的反犹太主义研究结果。 TikTok 高管收到了上传到该平台的充满仇恨的阴谋论和虚假信息的例子，其中包括有关哈马斯 10 月 7 日野蛮屠杀的例子，以及否认大屠杀的例子等。研究指出，一些内容已从平台上删除，但只是在很长一段时间后才删除，而另一些内容尚未删除。
TikTok’s Response
The TikTok representatives told Herzog that upwards of 160 million fake accounts that were active in spreading anti-Jewish and anti-Israel rhetoric had been identified. They said they were deeply disturbed by the findings of the research and evidence presented during the meeting and pledged to continue working with the president’s office and Israeli officials to do everything in their power to eradicate this phenomenon from the platform.
TikTok 代表告诉赫尔佐格，已发现超过 1.6 亿个活跃传播反犹太和反以色列言论的虚假账户。他们表示，他们对会议期间提出的研究结果和证据深感不安，并承诺继续与总统办公室和以色列官员合作，尽一切努力从平台上消除这种现象。
“We must fight lies and hatred wherever we find them, on the streets and online on social networks in order to prevent the manipulation of and negative impact on public opinion among the next generation around the world,” said Herzog. “I thank the executives from TikTok for this honest and open conversation, and for their willingness to face this vital challenge,” he added.
赫尔佐格说：“无论在街头还是在社交网络上，我们都必须与谎言和仇恨作斗争，以防止公众舆论在世界各地的下一代中被操纵和产生负面影响。”他补充道：“我感谢 TikTok 的高管进行了这次诚实、开放的对话，感谢他们愿意面对这一重大挑战。”
Previous Controversies
This was not the first time that TikTok faced criticism for its handling of antisemitic and anti-Israel content. In November 2023, the company refused to allow advertising to raise awareness of the hostages kidnapped by Hamas and being held captive in Gaza.
这并不是 TikTok 第一次因其处理反犹太主义和反以色列内容而受到批评。 2023 年 11 月，该公司拒绝允许通过广告来提高人们对被哈马斯绑架并被关押在加沙的人质的认识。
In December 2023, Barak Herscowitz, who previously worked as an adviser to then-Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, announced his resignation as TikTok’s “vertical lead in the government and public sector.” He cited his dissatisfaction with the company’s response to the antisemitism problem.
2023 年 12 月，曾担任时任以色列总理纳夫塔利·贝内特顾问的巴拉克·赫斯科维茨 (Barak Herscowitz) 宣布辞去 TikTok“政府和公共部门垂直领导”职务。他列举了自己对该公司应对反犹太主义问题的不满。
TikTok is not the only social media company that has been accused of enabling or ignoring hate speech and misinformation. In November 2023, Israel hosted Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of X, after he came under fire for amplifying hate speech on the site. Musk met with Israeli officials and toured the Kfar Aza kibbutz, where some of the worst violence occurred during the Hamas attacks on October 7. He expressed his sympathy and support for Israel and said he would like to help rebuild Gaza.
TikTok 并不是唯一一家被指控纵容或忽视仇恨言论和错误信息的社交媒体公司。 2023 年 11 月，X 的亿万富翁所有者埃隆·马斯克 (Elon Musk) 因在网站上放大仇恨言论而受到批评，以色列接待了他。马斯克会见了以色列官员，并参观了卡法阿扎基布兹，10月7日哈马斯袭击期间，这里发生了一些最严重的暴力事件。他表达了对以色列的同情和支持，并表示愿意帮助重建加沙。
(India CSR)
