The Disinformation Superhighway 0
Nigel Barber looks at how “social” media is being exploited to promote authoritarianism. One his examples is Myanmar’s oppression of the Rohingya; follow the link for more examples:
Not being Internet-savvy, Myanmar residents were inclined to believe whatever they read as though it had been edited like a reputable newspaper.
Their Facebook feeds contained many false and hateful narratives about the Rohingya, their atrocities committed against Buddhists, and their ties to Islamic terrorism. The Facebook algorithm amplified these hate-filled rants, offering a breeding ground for fake news hostile to the Rohinga..
Facebook was aware of the problem but opted not to hire sufficient staff in the country to set about removing some of the inflammatory false narratives.
