GLAAD: Social media's hate policy rollbacks are "appalling"
Meta 's and YouTube's updated moderation policies are threatening the safety of and harming LBGTQ people, according to a new report from GLAAD.
The big picture:"Recent years undeniably illustrate how online hate speech and misinformation negatively influence public opinion, legislation, and the real-world safety and health of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people," GLAAD president and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis said.
"It's just appalling to see such extreme shifts away from best practices in trust and safety," Jenni Olson, senior director of GLAAD's Social Media Safety Program, told Axios.
"Execs and employees at these companies owe the LGBTQ community answers about what their next steps are going to be to address these issues and stand up for the safety of their LGBTQ users," she said.
Driving the news: In its annual Social Media Safety Index, GLAAD gave failing scores (out of 100) to all six of the platforms it tracks with TikTok at 56, Facebook and Instagram both at 45, YouTube at 41, Threads at 40 and X at 30.
GLAAD's report analyzed 14 indicators, including having public policies that protect LGBTQ people from hate, harassment and violence, and that prohibit content promoting so-called conversion therapy.
While all six platforms received failing scores, TikTok received the highest as it prohibits misgendering and deadnaming along with "conversion therapy" content, the report said. But the report criticized TikTok's transparency.
"Major ideological shifts from Meta have been particularly extreme," Ellis said. The study suggested Meta remove "harmful exceptions" in its policy, such as their decision to now allow debunked "allegations of mental illness or abnormality" when it comes to gender and sexual orientation.
Catch up quick: Meta relaxed its moderation policies in January, which immediately raised concerns about leading to more real-world violence. Meta's Oversight Board called on the company to investigate the impact on human rights.
YouTube also removed "gender identity and expression" from its protected characteristic groups on its site. The company said its policies have not changed, but GLAAD noted "it is an objective fact that the gender identity protection is no longer expressly present in its public-facing policy."
Between the lines: GLAAD changed its scorecard methodology, which negates year-to-year comparisons.
The report has been released annually since 2021, as Axios' Ina Fried was first to report.
The other side: TikTok, Meta and X did not respond to requests for comment.
YouTube: " We confirmed earlier this year our hate speech policy hasn't changed. We have strict policies against content that promotes hatred or violence against members of the LGBTQ+ community and we continue to be vigilant in our efforts to quickly detect and remove this content," Boot Bullwinkle, a YouTube spokesperson, said in a statement to Axios.
What we're watching: GLAAD offered five key recommendations in its report for the social media platforms.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Epoch Times
18 minutes ago
- Epoch Times
Boulder Attack Suspect's Family Taken Into Federal Custody
Federal authorities have taken custody of the family of the suspect in Sunday's terror attack in Boulder, Colorado, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem That action comes two days after Mohammed Soliman, 45, was arrested in connection with a firebombing that burned at least a dozen Jewish supporters at a June 1 rally. Authorities say the Egyptian national was in the United States illegally after overstaying a visa and work permit, and that he lived in Colorado Springs with his wife and five children. Noem's post said Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers 'are taking the family ... into ICE custody.' That action was taken to investigate 'to what extent his family knew about this horrific attack, if they had any knowledge of it, or if they provided support to it,' Noem said. Officials said eight people were taken to hospitals after Soliman allegedly used a makeshift flamethrower and Molotov cocktails to burn rally participants; four others came forward with less serious injuries. At least one person suffered critical injuries. Soliman was also injured, and wore a bandage on his head when his mug shot was taken. Soliman faces multiple federal and state charges, including attempted murder; a An FBI affidavit said that Soliman told investigators he had left messages for his family on a cellphone that he hid in a desk drawer at his home before making the two-hour drive to Boulder. He had planned the onslaught for more than a year, investigators said, adding that Soliman stated he used YouTube videos to learn how to make explosive devices that were used in the attack. Soliman also said he was targeting Jews out of hatred, the FBI said. U.S. Attorney J. Bishop Grewell told reporters that Soliman admitted he would have used a firearm if he had been able to buy one; federal laws Noem said: 'I am continuing to pray for the victims of this attack and for all of their families. Our thoughts and our prayers go out to all of them, and I want them to know that justice will be served.' On June 2, Secretary of State Marco Rubio Many commenters applauded Rubio and others in President Donald Trump's administration for stricter immigration enforcement. Others pointed out that Soliman's work permit expired in March 2025—after the president took office, critics noted, saying his administration had failed to nab Soliman before the attack.
New York Post
23 minutes ago
- New York Post
Joy Reid floats speculation that her race, ‘anxiety' surrounding Trump played role in MSNBC firing
Ex-MSNBC host Joy Reid spoke out about her show being canceled on Monday, speculating that her race and network 'anxiety' surrounding President Donald Trump played a role in her ultimately being fired from the liberal network. 'I try not to speculate too much publicly because, again, I can't get inside the minds of other people. But I can tell you what other people have speculated about… There are lots of people at the network who are critical of Donald Trump. I mean, and they're still critical of him, I'm assuming, you know. So I don't think that's [it], but I do know there is a lot of anxiety both there and, I think, in every media. We're seeing it at CBS,' she said, referring to Trump's lawsuit against the network over a '60 Minutes' interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris. Reid spoke with Katie Couric in a video posted on her Substack page and on her YouTube channel. Reid's MSNBC show was canceled earlier this year. 'We're seeing it at ABC, where allegedly 'The View' hosts were told not to go so hard on Trump. There's a push for people to, hey, do less Trump. Do more entertainment. Don't be hard on him,' the former MSNBC host said, noting reporting that ABC's 'The View' hosts were told to tone down their political discussions. Couric pointed out that there was no difference between Reid and liberal hosts Nicolle Wallace or Rachel Maddow, to which Reid responded, 'only in one way was I different. I'm a Black woman doing the thing.' 'I think that there is a difference for Trump in hearing the kinds of criticisms specifically out of a Black woman, it bothers him in a way it doesn't bother him like anything else. He's got this sort of tick about race, you know, and about, sort of criticism coming specifically from a Black woman because we've seen him lay out and dish out real abuse against Black women journalists,' Reid said during her conversation with Couric. 3 Joy Reid, the ex-MSNBC host of 'The ReidOut,' claims that her race, along with President Trump's presence, played a role in her being let go by the liberal network. 'I did a specific thing, which was, I tried to constantly unpack the racial history of the country, which is very much against the sort of Project 2025 thing. And it's something I can do in a certain capacity because of my background, because not only am I a Black woman, but I come from immigrant parents who come from what Donald Trump would consider s—hole countries, but that have a take on race that is different,' Reid continued. Reid's show was replaced with 'The WeekNight', an ensemble program featuring former Kamala Harris spokesperson Symone Sanders-Townsend, Alicia Menendez, the daughter of disgraced former New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez, and Michael Steele, the former Republican National Committee chair who now staunchly opposes the GOP. MSNBC's new lineup has struggled in its first month, with Psaki shedding half the audience her predecessors averaged in the same timeslot, and with its other new programming struggling to attract viewers. 3 Reid spoke with Katie Couric in a video posted on her Substack and YouTube channel, explaining how President Trump and her race led to her being fired. AP MSNBC and ABC's 'The View' did not immediately return requests for comment. Reid said prior to her show's cancellation, she was told that her show was 'down less' in ratings than any other MSNBC show, aside from Maddow's. Reid and her former primetime colleagues faced a major ratings decline after Trump won the election. Her show, 'The Reidout,' shed 47% of its total audience, averaging just 759,000 viewers after averaging 1.4 million viewers throughout 2024 leading up to Election Day, 3 Reid told Couric specifically, 'I think that there is a difference for Trump in hearing the kinds of criticisms specifically out of a Black woman, it bothers him in a way it doesn't bother him like anything else.' Substack/@joyannreid 'Our show was down less than any other primetime show. We were down, other than Rachel Maddow, we were down the least. So we were just told that we were holding on pretty well. And, you know, it's not like the ratings have gotten better since I've been gone. So I can tell you, honestly, I even had my exit interview and no one has told me why I was fired. I have no idea,' she said. Reid said MSNBC's reasoning was 'scripted' and 'perfunctory,' and explained that she had started being careful on social media. 'We were being very careful, and I was trying to be more careful about anything on social media, because I know there was a real anxiety about social media, very much an anxiety about anything on social media,' she said. 'I don't know, I genuinely was not told.' Fox News' Joseph Wulfsohn and Brian Flood contributed to this report.
Yahoo
25 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Pulse memorial gets $5 million pledge from Orange County
Orange County commissioners unanimously pledged $5 million today to support the city of Orlando's plan to build a memorial to Pulse, honoring its victims and survivors at the site of the former LGBTQ nightclub as the ninth anniversary of the horrific massacre approaches this month. The decision followed a presentation of the proposed memorial, on which construction would begin next summer. It marked another step forward for a remembrance effort that began as a privately led campaign, collapsed amid infighting and misspending, and is being carried forward now by government agencies and public dollars. 'It's time that there is a memorial,' said Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings, who was the sheriff when a lone gunman opened fire during Latin Night at the club on Orange Avenue on June 12, 2016. 'None of us thought that it would take nine years to get to this point and we can't go back and relitigate all of the failures along the way that have happened, but what we can do is control how we move forward together.' Demings said he did not want the county to be an obstacle to a memorial. The rampage at the club killed 49 people, wounded 53 others and at the time was the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history. Demings asked the capacity audience inside the commission chambers Tuesday to pause for a moment of silence at the beginning of the meeting, then described the proposed memorial as an appropriate tribute to the people and the diverse communities affected by tragedy. Heather Fagan, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer's chief of staff, lauded the county's pledge as another step in the healing process. Orlando City Council welcomes new design for Pulse Memorial Orlando City Commissioner Patty Sheehan urged her counterparts on the county board to help the community move forward. 'I can never forget the screams of the relatives on Orange Avenue as they found out their children and family members were victims. It haunts me to this day, but I also remember how our community came together, city and county to assist the victims and their families,' she told county commissioners. 'I got to know 38 of the 49 families, and they want their loved ones remembered.' As she spoke, Sheehan clutched a rainbow rosary, a gift from Teresa Jacobs, county mayor when the tragedy occurred. 'You have an opportunity to be part of the healing,' Sheehan said. 'This didn't just impact the gay community. There were members of the LatinX community, the African-American community, there were straight allies who were murdered that day. It's important for us to remember all those beautiful people who simply wanted to dance.' The city sought county funds to help design and build a memorial — estimated to cost $12 million — and has itself pledged more than half the anticipated bill. Orlando took over the memorial effort in late 2023 amid the messy collapse of the private onePulse foundation, oversaw a recently concluded citizens' design process, and has promised to complete the structure by the end of 2027. Created to design a memorial, the onePulse Foundation shut down after spending most of the millions it raised to defray its own lavish expenses, including hundreds of thousands of dollars paid to high-priced architects and consultants. Orlando seeks $5 million from Orange County for Pulse memorial; some commissioners are hesitant Mayra Alvear, whose daughter Amanda, died at Pulse, said a completed memorial has much to offer Central Florida. 'This memorial will provide solace, a place for reflection, contemplation…a special place for years to come,' she said. shudak@
