Hate Prevention Institute meets with Success
The Online Hate Prevention Institute (OHPI) has released a report documenting serious racial hatred on YouTube. The report highlights how one user in a single day uploaded 1710 videos, the vast majority of which were blatant hate speech. YouTube responded by closing the users account within 24 hours of receiving an advanced copy of OHPI’s report.
Dr Andre Oboler
OHPI’s CEO, Melbourne-based Dr Andre Oboler, commented that “YouTube must be commended for its speedy response to OHPI’s report, but it is concerning that such hateful content, and in such volume in a single account, was able to remain on the YouTube site for over a month without triggering internal warnings.” OHPI’s release note that accompanies the report mentions that at least one video was flagged multiple times within days of being uploaded, and that YouTube was notified by e-mail of both this video and the account more generally by a peak Jewish community body within that first week.
The report notes that, “the volume of content and the short time in which it was uploaded are indicative of a more serious violation. A comparison can be drawn to copyright law where commercial scale can tip the matter from a civil action into a criminal offence.” The report highlights the need for “greater sanctions both by the state and by the platform provider” when such serious violations occur.
The report lists a variety of sanctions and approaches that could be used to extend the penalty for racial vilification and the promotion of other forms of hate speech on platforms such as YouTube beyond the confines of the individual platform. “When the sanction for copyright infringement is greater, and more rigorously enforced, than the sanction for promoting genocide, we need to stop and question our priorities” Dr Oboler concluded.
The Online Hate Prevention Institute was established in January 2012 as a dedicated organisation to combat online hate and to reduce the emotional and physical harm that such hate can cause.
Dr Oboler is an internationally recognised expert in online hate and social media. He is CEO of the Online Hate Prevention Institute and co-chair of the Online Antisemitism working group of the Global Forum to Combat Antisemitism. He holds a PhD in Computer Science from Lancaster University (UK).
Since the Andrew Bolt case racial vilification can now be defined as almost anything. While ‘hate speech’ and racial and religious vilification are abhorrent and must be condemned, I’m concerned that vigilante groups are using vilification legislation to limit public interest free speech. Because vilification legislation kicks in as soon as an individual feels offended, the restrictions on legitimate freedom of expression make it perilous for anyone to comment on anything. Of course libertarians will support your right to free speech – provided it agrees with their viewpoint.
As great as it is to remove any hate from YouTube, it is unfortunate that all the videos removed were listed on one profile, were only reposts, and are all still on YouTube under other profiles elsewhere on YouTube.