29/03/17 - Internet firms must do more to tackle online extremism, says No 10

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2017/mar/24/internet-firms-must-do-more-to-tackle-online-extremism-no-10

The article focuses on how the Prime Minister's spokesperson has stated that social media or online firms such as Facebook and Google are not doing enough when it comes to removing harmful content from their websites. Due to the recent London Terror attack, this debate has been re sparked and 10 Downing Street has stated that the government has always in the past urged this companies that they could do more and work better when it comes to harmful content or even when society's concerns are raised. After a recent hearing with Google, Facebook and Twitter, Yvette Cooper, the committee’s chair, offered a assessment of their record tackling extremist material which showed that their commitment to removing such content was lacking.

• Downing Street has called for social media companies to do more to expunge extremist material from the internet.
• The prime minister’s spokesman said firms such as Facebook and Google “can and must do more” to remove inflammatory material from the web and that it was up to them to respond to public concern.
• The London terror attack has reignited concern about the easy availability of material promoting violent extremism online, although No 10 said on Friday it was making a general point and that it was not not necessarily saying online material was a factor in the radicalisation of Khalid Masood
• Yvette Cooper said YouTube’s enforcement of its community standards was “a joke” and that Twitter and Facebook were too slow to deal with hate-filled content

Personally, I believe that the government in some way or form is more than welcome to criticise the use of social media and large organisations but more specifically how they tackle harmful content. I definitely agree that companies such as Facebook and Google do not do enough when it comes to removing harmful content or taking care of content that is being reported. I think this is something that should be dealt by the companies specifically and not the government as a whole, as that can lead to issues of piracy and government censorship.