Daily US Times: US supermodel Kim Kardashian West and dozens of other celebrities have announced they will freeze their social media accounts to protest against the spread of “hate, propaganda and misinformation”.
Kardashian West wrote in a statement on Tuesday: “Misinformation shared on social media has a serious impact.”
The move is part of the #StopHateforProfit campaign organised by civil rights activists.
The celebrities will freeze their accounts for 24 hours on Wednesday.
Kardashian West said: “I can’t sit by and stay silent while these platforms continue to allow the spreading of hate, propaganda and misinformation – created by groups to sow division and split America apart.”
She added: “Misinformation shared on social media has a serious impact on our elections and undermines our democracy.”
Other celebrities that have agreed to take part in the boycott include actors Sacha Baron Cohen, Jennifer Lawrence, Leonardo DiCaprio as well as singer Katy Perry,
Perry wrote on Instagram: “I can’t sit idly by while these platforms turn a blind eye to groups and posts spreading hateful disinformation.”
Actor Ashton Kutcher, who has millions of followers and is also joined the boycott. “these tools were not built to spread hate [and] violence,” he said.
The #StopHateforProfit campaign was launched in June, and the organizers accuse Instagram and Facebook of not doing enough to stop hate speech and disinformation.
The group has focused on Facebook, which also owns WhatsApp Instagram and WhatsApp and last year attracted advertising revenue of almost $70bn (£56.7bn).
Thousands of businesses and major civil rights groups – including the Anti-Defamation League (AD) and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) – have signed up to the campaign.
The group said in a statement: “We are quickly approaching one of the most consequential elections in American history.”
“Facebook’s unchecked and vague ‘changes’ are falling dangerously short of what is necessary to protect our democracy.”
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