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Web Companies Combat Anti-Semitism
NEW YORK (AP) August 9, 2000 -- America Online and other Internet sites said
they moved swiftly this week to combat some anti-Semitic postings
related to Al Gore's selection of a Jewish running mate.
Though the remarks about Sen. Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut
were mostly limited to Web sites and discussion groups frequented
by hate groups, some did spill into chat rooms and message boards
from mainstream Internet providers.
AOL, which recorded more than 28,000 postings on Lieberman, said
Wednesday it deleted an unspecified number for violating its
policies against hate speech. CNN suspended about 10 users from its
chat rooms.
Lieberman was tapped Monday to become the first Jewish candidate
on a major-party ticket.
Abraham Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League,
lauded the response from Internet sites.
"They are doing it on their own, not just waiting for us to
bring it to their attention," Foxman said.
AOL spokesman Nicholas Graham said the postings were being
investigated, and offenders could have their accounts canceled or
suspended. "We'll look at it on a case-by-case basis, but we do
have zero tolerance on hate speech," he said.
CNN has software filters to automatically block profanity and
hate words from chat rooms, and humans look for messages that slip
through.
Moderators at MSNBC and ABC News sites were warned beforehand
about the potential for slurs and other forms of hate speech. Some
postings at ABC were removed. Some hate speech appeared on Yahoo!
discussion groups, although the service refused comment on
specifics.
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