In the video, Rust is heard screaming, “I’m getting shot!” Peter Romer-Friedman, an attorney who has brought several cases against Facebook, said the deceptive trade practices and false promises of online safety alleged in Parker’s complaint “are viable claims.Kentucky Derby Day In Louisville Sees Street Protests, Extra Security At Churchill Downs Racetrack In this case, Parker used the platform of announcing the complaint to appeal to Congress to curb the liability protections for social media under Section 230. As a result, such complaints “are often just for show,” he said. The FTC is legally able to ignore complaints filed by non-government parties, Goldman noted. The social media platforms’ terms of service don’t provide a solid promise that everything on their sites will meet the standards, he said, and in fact they include caveats that, “We can’t do a perfect job.” Parker said he hoped that Lina Khan, the new head of the FTC appointed by President Joe Biden, would take the complaints more seriously.īut Eric Goldman, a law professor at Santa Clara University and co-director of its High Tech Law Institute, said he sees problems with the case that Parker is making by alleging violations of Facebook’s terms of service. The FTC declined to comment on the latest filing and doesn't typically disclose whether or not it has decided to investigate a complaint. Parker previously worked with the Georgetown law clinic to file a similar FTC complaint last year against Google and its YouTube service. In her Senate testimony last week, Haugen urged lawmakers to remove the protections in cases where dominant content driven by computer algorithms favors massive engagement by users over public safety. Republican and Democratic lawmakers have called for stripping away some of the protections granted by a 25-year-old law - in a provision known as Section 230 - that shields internet companies from liability for what users post. Parker said he agreed with Haugen on the need for Congress to impose new curbs on the long-standing legal protections for speech posted on social media platforms. “Alison’s murder, shared on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube, is just one of the egregious practices that are undermining the fabric of our society,” Parker said. That echoed some of the calls made last week by whistleblower and former Facebook employee Frances Haugen, who has accused the company of harming children, inciting political violence and fueling misinformation. The complaint says Facebook is engaging in deceptive trade practices by violating its own terms of service and misrepresenting the safety of the platform and how hard it is for users to get harmful and traumatic content removed.įacebook, which is based in Menlo Park, California, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.Īndy Parker said during a news conference announcing the FTC complaint that he also wants to see action from Congress. “The reality is that Facebook and Instagram put the onus on victims and their families to do the policing of graphic content - requiring them to relive their worst moments over and over to curb the proliferation of these videos,” says the complaint. Video footage of the shooting - some of which was taken by the gunman - repeatedly resurfaces on Facebook and Instagram despite assurances from top executives that it will be removed, says a complaint filed Tuesday by Parker and attorneys with the Georgetown Law Civil Rights Clinic. His daughter, TV news reporter Alison Parker, and cameraman Adam Ward, were killed by a former co-worker while reporting for Roanoke, Virginia’s WDBJ-TV in August 2015. WASHINGTON - The family of a slain journalist is asking the Federal Trade Commission to take action against Facebook for failing to remove online footage of her shooting death.Īndy Parker said Tuesday the company is violating its own terms of service in hosting videos on Facebook and its sibling service Instagram that glorify violence.
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