Tumblr says it has deleted more than 4 million re-blogs containing hate speech as part of a new policy on moderating toxic content
- The social platform will now remove re-blog containing hate speech
- Tumblr says it has removed 4.47 million re-blogs containing toxic content
- Most of the content stemmed from ‘Nazi-related’ blogs, Tumblr says
- It’s new policy will use human moderators to judge what content is removed
Tumblr is taking a stronger tact to removing hate speech from its platform.
The social media platform says that it is now started to delete re-blogs of content found to contain hate speech in an effort to purge Tumblr of toxic posts.
The move marks an escalation in Tumblr’s efforts to clean its platform. Previously only original posts were removed while re-blogs remained active.
Tumblr’s new policy on hate speech will see the delete re-blogged content that has been found to violate rules (stock)
‘We’ve listened to your feedback and have reassessed how we can more effectively remove hateful content from Tumblr,’ said Tumblr in a blog post.
‘In our own research, and from your helpful reports, we found that much of the existing hate speech stemmed from blogs that have actually already been terminated.’
According to Tumblr it deleted 4.47 million pieces of content stemming from more than 1,000 mostly ‘Nazi-related’ blogs on the platform earlier this week.
Tumblr also clarified its policy on hate speech in a blog post, stating that it will retain content that provides counter-arguments or has an ‘educational’ value.
‘We do not want to silence those who are providing educational and necessary counter-arguments to hate speech,’ Tumblr wrote in a blog post.
The platform said it has consulted a ‘variety of outside groups and experts’ to help it tailor a new policy on hate speech.
Tumblr’s approach to removing content will also include human moderators according to the platform.
‘There’s no silver bullet solution, AI, or algorithm that can perfectly target hate speech,’ wrote Tumblr in a statement.
‘That’s why we have a dedicated Trust & Safety team, and why we have an easy way for you to report any hate speech you do see.’
Throughout the last several years, Tumblr has changed its policies on various types of content including nudity and pornography – both of which are now prohibited.