[Albion] Football's social media boycott 30/4 - 3/5

[Bozza]

All sides of the game to unite for a boycott from Facebook, Twitter and Instagram from 30 April to 3 May

The FA, Premier League, EFL, FA Women's Super League, FA Women's Championship, PFA, LMA, PGMOL, Kick It Out, Women in Football and the FSA will unite for a social media boycott from 15:00 BST on Friday 30 April to 23:59 BST on Monday 3 May, in response to the ongoing and sustained discriminatory abuse received online by players and many others connected to football.

This has been scheduled to take place across a full-fixture programme in the men's and women's professional game and will feature clubs across the Premier League, EFL, WSL and Women's Championship switching off their Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts.

As a collective, the game recognises the considerable reach and value of social media to our sport. The connectivity and access to supporters who are at the heart of football remains vital.

Social media companies must do more

However, the boycott shows English football coming together to emphasise that social media companies must do more to eradicate online hate, while highlighting the importance of educating people in the ongoing fight against discrimination.

In our letter of February 2021, English football outlined its requests of social media companies, urging filtering, blocking and swift takedowns of offensive posts, an improved verification process and re-registration prevention, plus active assistance for law enforcement agencies to identify and prosecute originators of illegal content.

While some progress has been made, we reiterate those requests today in an effort to stem the relentless flow of discriminatory messages and ensure that there are real-life consequences for purveyors of online abuse across all platforms.

Boycott action from football in isolation will, of course, not eradicate the scourge of online discriminatory abuse, but it will demonstrate that the game is willing to take voluntary and proactive steps in this continued fight.

 

[Fred Oliver - Legend]

That’ll show em

 

[pocketseagull]

That’ll show em

Why's this racist allowed to post here?

 

[Iggle Piggle]

Qatar. Modern day slavery building those stadiums and still goes ahead. Still, giving Twitter admin an extra day off will earn some woke points so well done all.

Of course I'm anti racist before you all start. This is just pandering bullshit.

 

[Neville's Breakfast]

Glad you mentioned it as otherwise I wouldn’t have noticed.

 

[Winker]

All sides of the game to unite for a boycott from Facebook, Twitter and Instagram from 30 April to 3 May

The FA, Premier League, EFL, FA Women's Super League, FA Women's Championship, PFA, LMA, PGMOL, Kick It Out, Women in Football and the FSA will unite for a social media boycott from 15:00 BST on Friday 30 April to 23:59 BST on Monday 3 May, in response to the ongoing and sustained discriminatory abuse received online by players and many others connected to football.

This has been scheduled to take place across a full-fixture programme in the men's and women's professional game and will feature clubs across the Premier League, EFL, WSL and Women's Championship switching off their Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts.

As a collective, the game recognises the considerable reach and value of social media to our sport. The connectivity and access to supporters who are at the heart of football remains vital.

Social media companies must do more

However, the boycott shows English football coming together to emphasise that social media companies must do more to eradicate online hate, while highlighting the importance of educating people in the ongoing fight against discrimination.

In our letter of February 2021, English football outlined its requests of social media companies, urging filtering, blocking and swift takedowns of offensive posts, an improved verification process and re-registration prevention, plus active assistance for law enforcement agencies to identify and prosecute originators of illegal content.

While some progress has been made, we reiterate those requests today in an effort to stem the relentless flow of discriminatory messages and ensure that there are real-life consequences for purveyors of online abuse across all platforms.

Boycott action from football in isolation will, of course, not eradicate the scourge of online discriminatory abuse, but it will demonstrate that the game is willing to take voluntary and proactive steps in this continued fight.

Are you turning NSC off?

 

[vagabond]

Why's this racist allowed to post here?

I just had a look... you’re right.

Fred Oliver is racist scum.

The most shocking part of this sad tale is that the officer is white and not black, especially considering the area too. All very strange and the more details that come out the more intriguing it is. Something has gone very wrong somewhere. Thoughts and prayers to the lady’s friends and family’s. R.I.P

 

[A1X]

But where can I get my mentalist Percy Tau fanclub content now??

 

[Fred Oliver - Legend]

I just had a look... you’re right.

Fred Oliver is racist scum.

For assuming a murder committed in a predominantly black area was committed by a black person? Ok.

 

[GT49er]

So all the footballers and other people connected with football - and other sorts - will tear themselves away from their Facebook/Whatsap or whatever pages. Meanwhile, the racists, haters, psychopaths and w*nking keyboard warriors can just go on posting abuse whenever and wherever they please?

That'll larn 'em ................... but how, exactly? (genuine question - I don't use any of these social media platforms myself).

 

[A1X]

Ultimately the only way to resolve this is to make sure all accounts are traceable to an individual. That would end this problem almost instantly (or at least mean the people responsible are driven out and can't just rock up again 5 minutes later once they've set themselves up with a dodgy email address).

 

[JC Footy Genius]

Hopefully, the next step will be a 7-day boycott if this impressive 4-day boycott doesn't change the online behaviour of millions.

 

[Blue Valkyrie]

Waste of time.

However perhaps they could include any 'highlights' of the Sheff Utd debacle in the boycott as well.

 

[Swansman]

Why's this racist allowed to post here?

Obviously a friend of someone high up the NSC hierarchy.

 

[Official Old Man]

2.7 Billion Facebook users. How many will miss 92 football clubs, all of whom will churn out double their output on Thursday and Tuesday?

 

[Nibbler]

One week boycott is pathetic. Obviously nothing is going to change. Until posters are accountable for their messages you will always get the idiots who think it's ok to post abusive content. Its just impossible to expect everyone to behave.

There are ways to verify ones identity online so I don't know why there isn't a social media platform that requires it? Surely if that were to happen most sensible people would ditch Facebook and Twitter?

Until that is in place, all clubs have a website so why not stick to that for the exchange of information? If the clubs do not have resources to moderate posts then don't allow any comments from readers.

We always managed perfectly well before social media came along - the sky isn't going to fall in.

 

[Dave the OAP]

But where can I get my mentalist Percy Tau fanclub content now??

To be fair to him I would have taken trossard off after the first half and given Percy a run out for 45 minutes...he couldn’t have done much worse!

 

[beorhthelm]

One week boycott is pathetic. Obviously nothing is going to change. Until posters are accountable for their messages you will always get the idiots who think it's ok to post abusive content. Its just impossible to expect everyone to behave.

There are ways to verify ones identity online so I don't know why there isn't a social media platform that requires it? Surely if that were to happen most sensible people would ditch Facebook and Twitter?

there is no need to impose ID checks, posts have to go through networks that are mostly traceable (people involved not intelligent enough to find the ways around). it simply needs action. from the police to trace and prosecute and from platforms to lock/delete accounts. if people found thier social network disappears when they make a racist post, they'll soon stop.

and so to the clubs they must make a boycott run until platforms propose a solution. a few days protest might be useful to highlight a problem, we already know about this. now action is needed.

 

[Dave the OAP]

2.7 Billion Facebook users. How many will miss 92 football clubs, all of whom will churn out double their output on Thursday and Tuesday?

As someone with inside knowledge of the ins and outs of stopping hate messages via algorithms etc, after all you can’t read every billion post per day to see if someone is being nasty...the prevalence of bots set up to flood these platforms with hate messages are like a plague. When children as young as 7 have been caught posting hate messages and you only have to look at our Facebook page to see some of the homophobic bile that South Africans and Iranians post after every game, in fact all the time to see how difficult this is to police.

Parents don’t care what their children are posting...young adults think it is their right to do so...middle age people are yesterday’s football hooligans and bring that mentality to other teams pages and old people who have views based well and truly in the past post things they have no idea is inappropriate ( I have always said Paxxx are Paxxx).

The genie is out of the bottle and we have become a very nasty entitled devisive society.

It will NEVER a change

 

[swindonseagull]

To be fair to him I would have taken trossard off after the first half and given Percy a run out for 45 minutes...he couldn’t have done much worse!

Was Percy even on the bench?