PM Starmer warns social media firms after Southport sparks UK riots By Reuters
Written by Alistair Smout
LONDON (Reuters) – British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has warned social media companies to respect laws against the spread of violence online after fake news about a mass stabbing incident earlier in the week sparked violent scenes.
A 17-year-old boy appeared in an English court on Thursday charged with murdering three young girls in a knife attack at a summer dance class in Southport that has shocked the nation and sparked two nights of violent protests.
These disruptions followed the rapid spread of false information on social media that the suspect in the stabbing is an immigrant, anti-immigrant protesters descended on Southport from elsewhere, attacked the police and targeted a mosque.
Starmer said the disruptions were not legitimate protests, saying they were a crime spree “clearly driven by far-flung hatred” before adding a warning to tech companies.
“I'm not saying again to the big social media companies, and those who run them, the violence that has clearly broken out on the Internet: that is also a crime. It's happening on your premises, and the law must be maintained everywhere,” he said in the news. at the conference, adding that there is a “balance to be struck” in managing such forums.
“It's an amazing opportunity that we all enjoy… There's also a responsibility that comes with it. That's a place for a mature conversation to happen.”
A BLIZZARD OF FALSE INFORMATION
Campaign group Hope Not Hate said the riots in Southport on Tuesday followed “false information about the attack, much of it spread by far-right accounts.”
The 17-year-old suspect's name has not been revealed due to laws affecting juveniles charged with crimes, before the judge ruled that the media may name him Axel Rudakubana. He turns 18 next week and police said he was born in Cardiff.
But the claim that the suspect was an asylum seeker or an immigrant has been viewed at least 15.7 million times on X, Facebook (NASDAQ:), Instagram and other platforms, according to a Reuters analysis.
A false claim that he was an undocumented migrant who arrived in a small boat appeared on the “Channel 3 Now” website, which later apologized for publishing misleading and inaccurate information.
Netizen Andrew Tate on Tuesday shared a photo of the man he claimed was the attacker with the caption “just get off the boat”, but the claim turned out to be incorrect as it was a photo of a 51-year-old man who has been arrested for the crime. a separate stabbing in Ireland last year.
Separately, analysis by Channel 4 showed that 49% of traffic on social media site X referring to 'Southport Muslim' – a reference to an unsubstantiated claim about the attacker's religion – came from the United States, while 30% came from Britain.
Police said the incident is not being treated as terrorism-related, and urged people not to speculate on details while the investigation continues.
Nigel Farage, the leader of the right-wing Reform Party, said on Tuesday he wondered if the “truth is being withheld from us” as he questioned why the incident could be considered terrorism-related and questioned whether the suspect was under surveillance. with security services.
After being criticized by several people, including Starmer's deputy Angela Rayner, who accused Farage of lying, Farage said he thought his “gentle questions” were fair and reasonable while adding that the internet was at the same time full of baseless ideas.
Starmer refused to be drawn into commenting on what Farage said, and reiterated that he was focused on the families and police officers who had been contacted.
But Starmer warned that any misinformation that interferes with the work of the authorities could jeopardize efforts to catch the right case.
“The cost of the discriminatory trial ends up being paid by the victims and their families who are deprived of the justice they deserve,” he said.
