UN Secretary General Asks Tech Companies To Stop Profit From Toxic Content On Social Media

UN officer Antonio Guterres is with the Jewish community. (photo": x @antinooguterres)

Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, on Friday 16 February called on tech companies to stop earnings from spreading toxic content after accusing social media platforms of engaging in strengthening antisemitism, racism, and anti-Muslim hatred.

'Technical companies must take responsibility and stop profit from spreading toxic content of all kinds' at the Munich Security Conference," Guterres said.

"We are witnessing an explosion of intolerance against antisemitism and other forms of religious and racial hatred," he added.

Guterres has repeatedly expressed concern about the power of social media companies and asked for regulations to increase transparency.

"The divided people are weak people where the narrative of extremists can be rooted and tensions quickly turn violent, destroying democratic values," Guterres said.

Social media companies claim to have taken various steps to remove harmful content from their platforms, especially since the Israeli-Hamas conflict broke out on October 7.