Billionaire investor Bill Ackman has urged Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter) and Mark Zuckerberg’s Instagram and Facebook to address the divisive algorithms on social media platforms while suggesting a closer examination of ByteDance-owned TikTok’s influence.
What Happened: Ackman, the head of the Pershing Square hedge fund, on Monday took to X and responded to the video going viral on social media that allegedly shows a man going on an antisemitic rant at Harvard University.
He started his post by saying that “identifying this racist anonymous thug and giving the world an economic incentive to find him isn’t the answer. We need to work toward a world without mindless hate.”
The billionaire further stated that publicly revealing the actions of such a person would only make them angrier. It’s vital for someone they look up to and trust to have a private conversation with them and explain why their behavior is hurtful.
He then voiced his concern about the role of social media giants in perpetuating division and amplifying hatred. “The world is quickly moving to a very dark place. Social media has been amplifying the hate for a decade as algorithms wind us up.”
Ackman then urged platforms like X, Instagram, and Facebook to “fix the algorithms so that we are able to find a common ground.”
He also bashed TikTok, saying that it is “massively manipulating public opinion” and should “probably be banned.”
“A foreign government should not be in control of the minds of our next generation of leaders,” he said, referring to TikTok’s Chinese lineage.
Why It’s Important: The impact of social media platforms on public discourse and the spread of information has come under scrutiny time and again, especially in regard to a conflict like the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.
The EU’s regulatory bodies have been actively watchful of the content on X and Meta Platforms Inc.’s META platforms that might incite violence.
Previously, Meta said that it removed more than 795,000 content breaches of its guidelines in Hebrew and Arabic in the three days following the Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct. 7.
On the other hand, X said that it’s using Community Notes to provide context for posts, videos, and photos shared on the platform. However, the feature got embroiled in a controversy after erroneously labeling a video as old and not from Israel.
Meanwhile, regarding TikTok, last month, it was reported that 18 state attorneys general announced their support for Montana’s ban on the app, citing concerns about its alleged deceptive practices and potential risks to users’ privacy and national security.
Image Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons
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