Brits Grill Google For Allowing David Duke Videos
Google’s decision to keep anti-Semitic David Duke videos on YouTube is irking lawmakers across the pond.
Britain’s Commons Home Affairs committee summoned Tuesday executives from Google, Twitter and Facebook for a hearing in which the social media giants were slammed for their failure to block hate speech and anti-Semitic content from their platforms.
Chairwoman Yvette Cooper took issue with the refusal of YouTube, which is owned by Google, to remove a video in which former KKK leader Duke accused Jewish People of “organizing white genocide” and claimed Zionists have conducted ethnic cleansing.
“How on earth is that not a breach of your own guidelines?” Cooper asked Google’s vice president Peter Barron.
The Google executive remained unapologetic. Barron admitted the Duke video was “anti-Semitic, deeply offensive and shocking,” but insisted it does not “meet the test for removing under our guidelines.”
Contact Nathan Guttman at guttman@forward.com
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