Star comment: Time to get tough over online Wild West
We have only to look at the fall-out from this week’s events in Westminster to see the unpleasant, unpalatable and frequently slanderous discourse that passes for debate on social media.
That, however, is not the worst of it. Youngsters, the sick and those who are vulnerable are frequently targeted by nefarious law breakers who use the anonymity that social media confers in order to commit crimes.
Social media can be a force for good. Frequently, however, it is not. Descriptions of it being The Wild West are apposite for it is all-too-often lawless and base.
Action has been required for some time and now social media companies are being told they may face fines if they cannot demonstrate that they are stopping people banned from their platforms for abusive behaviour from setting up new accounts.
The House of Commons Petitions Committee wants the Government to act against abusive behaviour. It is right to make that call and the Government should step up to legislate on behalf of the law-abiding population.
Social media can be a destructive force when mis-used.
There are so many examples, with anti-vaxxers just one. The impact of some messaging on vulnerable people can be profound. Social media allows misinformation and abuse to be sent directly to their target. It can also be hidden, so that a child may be suffering online bullying that is completely hidden from their parents.
This issue has been raised again and again, yet companies still appear to be unable to grip it. It is time for authorities to get tough in order to bring the Wild West of the internet under some kind of control.
West Midland Safari Park should be cut some slack on the issue of charges for carers.
The attraction has done the right thing in re-instating free entry after something of a backlash. It has recognised it made a mistake and has acted on it.
We should, however, remind ourselves that the initial decision was made by a business that has suffered through the past two years of Covid disruption. Economically, it and other tourist attractions have been hit hard.
And while it is absolutely right to allow carers in for free to look after vulnerable visitors, the park is relying on the rest of us to pay up in order to cover its running costs.
The safari park has been much loved by families across our region since it opened in 1973. We hope it and other attractions can finally have a disruption-free year so that they can continue to be enjoyed by generations to come.
