Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah calls out Mark Zuckerberg's Meta for 'faulty translation' of Kannada
Taking to social media platform X, the Chief Minister wrote, 'Faulty auto-translation of Kannada content on @Meta platforms is distorting facts & misleading users. This is especially dangerous when it comes to official communications.'
Highlighting the seriousness of the issue, Siddaramaiah further cautioned, 'Social media platforms must act responsibly. I caution citizens to be aware that translations shown are often inaccurate. Such negligence by tech giants can harm public understanding & trust.'
Following the public statement, the CM's Media Advisor, K V Prabhakar, formally wrote to Meta urging immediate corrective measures. In the letter addressed to the Meta India team, Prabhakar stated, 'We have noted with concern that the auto-translation from Kannada to English is frequently inaccurate and, in some cases, grossly misleading. This poses a significant risk, especially when public communications, official statements, or important messages from the Chief Minister and the Government are incorrectly translated.'
He added that these flaws 'can lead to misinterpretation among users, many of whom may not realise that what they are reading is an automated and faulty translation rather than the original message.'
The letter urged Meta to take two key steps:
1. Temporarily suspend the auto-translation feature for Kannada content until accuracy improves.
2. Collaborate with qualified Kannada language experts and linguistic professionals to enhance contextual accuracy.
'We request that this issue be treated with due seriousness and addressed on priority,' the letter read.
There has been no immediate response from Meta at the time of publication.
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