Apology just not enough

Who wields the greatest power to influence public opinion currently in the world? Not many would disagree if the answer is social media. It should be noted that the same crowd that shouted for the death of Julius Caesar moments later cheered Caesar following Mark Antony’s speech. In that sense, it is easier to change the mindset of a crowd than to waste time on an individual. It is now almost universally accepted that social media campaigns can, to a large extent, influence elections.

Today, with the advent of AI techniques, it is very easy to mislead people by presenting false figures, images, conversations, etc. It is easier to create unrest in a country than anyone could believe. Although it may seem harmless at first glance, every sensible person should use their discernment to realise the danger lurking in those invisible hands ready to put a country into chaos. No power should be allowed to mislead the people and disrupt nation-building.

Removing the video of a country's Prime Minister addressing the people is a grave mistake. Worse is blaming a software error for it. Derogatory and disparaging posts at India’s Prime Minister continue to be posted on the same platform, but Meta’s software error only targeted PM Modi’s video. Meta's apology should be assessed in this context. The head of Meta apologised, admitting to the lapses in controlling the spread of child sexual content and deepfakes. Operating in India, destroying our peace and creating insecurity after taking money from our enemies should not be entertained. A mere apology seems not enough.

Meta is liable to pay a huge fine. If only they value the money, they will stop repeating the same in future. Fake videos appearing on social media will spread like wildfire and cannot be extinguished. Whoever tries to use this as a weapon to divide society needs to be shown his place.

Strict measures should be taken by the authorities to convince such platforms about the heavy price they will pay for such 'software errors'.