Holes in Metaverse

Context: The US has recently documented a report, which reveals the issues associated with Metaverse, that needs to be addressed.

Issues associated with Metaverse 

• Constant barrage of nationalistic content, Misinformation and Content denigrating minorities: Analysis from Facebook shows
  • 40% of posts were found to be “inauthentic” in West Bengal (During elections), and content around nationalism and the military Pulwama terror attack are its example. 
  • Misplaced priorities: As hate content spiked, Meta shrunk the budget for its review team.
• Egregious inaction due to technical, managerial and political reasons: 
  • Lacks the capacity or has not invested in AI and manpower to tackle misinformation in “vernacular” languages;
  • Continues to take its ethical responsibility in Western markets more seriously, side-lining issues in Indian context. 
• Lacks in regulation and political will to clamp down on polarising and false political speech through new technologies. 
• Fundamental problem with Meta as its prime mandate is maximising views and screen-time. 
  • Concern for the social and political consequences of this drive seems secondary. 

Way Forward

• Meta’s AI needs to factor in ethics and social impact in its operations. 
• Political parties and constitutional office holders must not use social media platforms for political gain through polarisation, because it takes a larger toll.

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