The recent video of a murder on Facebook has brought the issue of the role social media plays in our society to the forefront and what responsibilities online platforms, from Twitter to Facebook, should have for the content posted on their sites.
With possibly the largest active live streaming and online video service in the world, it is an issue that China has been struggling with for years. But what can the US, and the rest of the world, now learn from China’s experience?
Currently, a nationwide manhunt is underway in the US, after the suspect shot dead an elderly man in Cleveland and posted the video on Facebook on Sunday.
Stephens is seen in a combination of stills from a video he broadcast of himself on Facebook in Cleveland, Ohio, US, April 16, 2017. / VCG Photo
The suspect, 37-year-old Steve Stephens shot 74-year-old Robert Godwin on his way back from Easter lunch on Sunday afternoon, apparently at random. Cleveland police previously said the man livestreamed the killing on Facebook Live, but it later turned out that the video was recorded and uploaded.
Stephens also uploaded another video in which he claimed that he had killed 13 people and would kill more.
The tragedy has also put Facebook under fire, for it had allowed the video of the killing to stay on the site for nearly two hours.
Justin Osofsky, Facebook’s vice president for global operations and media partnerships, said in a statement that they will look for easier ways for users to report such videos, and will speed up their reviewing process.
Godwin, 74, was shot and killed while walking on East 93rd Street Sunday afternoon in Stephens' random "Easter Massacre". / AP Photo
It was not the first time the world’s largest social network was questioned for allowing violent content. Last month, a 15-year-old girl was raped by a gang of five or six men, and the process was live streamed on Facebook. In January, a man in Chicago was bound and gagged by four people, and was subsequently beaten and tortured.
Online violence raises concerns globally
Facebook is only one of a handful of social media platforms that have raised questions over the spread of online crimes, and it is not a problem that only involves social media in the US.
On Sina Weibo, China’s answer to Twitter, school bullying has been brought to the public's attention after videos were frequently posted online. Violent, vulgar or obscene content on live stream platforms have also raised public concerns and fierce debates.
In recent years, online live stream platforms have been booming in China, with many live streaming broadcasters and social media users, also known as “web red” in Chinese, becoming newly rising stars. The highest income for a live stream broadcaster could exceed 10,000 yuan (over 1,400 US dollars) per month.
A Chinese woman uses a cellphone to do live stream broadcast. /VCG Photo
Low entering threshold and high profits have driven many into chasing various kinds of content for live stream broadcast or video producing, but most of them have involved violence, pornography, fraud, and even terrorism.
In order to tackle the problem, Chinese authorities issued a regulation on November 4, 2016, ordering service providers and content creators to obtain qualifications and act according to the law.
Service providers are obliged to censor content before releasing it, and should have the technical ability to stop live streams immediately, according to the regulation released by the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC).
Various cellphone applications providing live stream services. /VCG Photo
Following the regulation’s taking effect on December 1, 2016, thousands of accounts on live-streaming websites have been shut down in Beijing, reported Xinhua.
Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a speech on clarifying the online environment on April 19, 2016, saying that “no one would be happy to live in a space filled with falsehood, fraud, attacks, abuses, terrorism, pornography and violence.”
“The cyberspace is a spiritual homeland of hundreds of millions of Chinese people,” said President Xi, calling for a clean online environment for the people, and enhancing regulations and crackdown on online crimes.
In early April, Chinese authorities have suspended at least 18 online live streaming services which provide obscene live shows during a new round of campaigns against the illegal production and distribution of online contents,and the campaign is still going on.
From the US to China, there are no perfect answers when it comes to the issue of online violence, but learning from each other’s experiences could be a first step.
