Should Facebook Police Content?

Facebook is a stock in US portfolios that has done very well for us. However, some people feel ambivalent about buying the shares because the company is often accused of not correctly policing the content that appears on their social media platforms.

In actual fact, Facebook has spent over $13 billion on content moderation in the last five years and employs over 40 000 people in related roles. These peoples' job (assisted by software tools) is to terminate fake accounts, combat covert operations by political agents and remove misinformation, hate speech and other dangerous content. They also help users to manage their privacy settings.

I feel that the criticism of the company by journalists and politicians is misplaced. Let's be honest, Facebook could employ ten times more content moderators, and there would still be people misbehaving on their platforms. Also, the moaning is often ideological - people only want to see their own views represented.

Sensitive viewers and children who encounter difficulties in the real world, will also face challenges online. That's only natural, right? Ultimately, participation is voluntary.

Online content is a reflection of humanity - messy, provocative, discordant, vibrant, exciting and sometimes problematic. Embrace it, stop complaining.