After leaving the post of head of the political advertising quality department in facebook in 2018 Yael Eisenstadt now she is one of the fiercest critics of the company and other giants social media and how they deal with hate speech and disinformation.

In addition, Eisenstadt is preparing to take the next step as it becomes a member next month Anti-Defamation Agency (ADL)a large civil rights group, where she will assume the role of vice chair and lead the technology division.

In a recent interview announcing the decision, Eisenstadt said she was “perfect” for the position given the group’s long history of fighting hate speech and extremism both online and offline. In addition, Eisenstadt has long been an advocate for a more thorough approach to security outside of Silicon Valley.

“It’s really like I’m taking a job I’ve always loved and putting it together with an organization that can make a real difference,” he told the Washington Post.

Her new role

In his new role, Eisenstadt will lead the nonprofit Center for Technology and Society (CTS), which conducts research and publishes its findings on the prevalence of extremism and hateful or misleading behavior on social media.

CEO Jonathan Greenblatt Eisenstadt’s hiring shows ADL has “redoubled its efforts to make internet companies transparent and accountable for the content they host,” the statement said.

Eisenstadt stressed that in addition to exploring the role online platforms can play in the spread of hateful content, she will also focus on “accountability mechanisms” that the group can use to “shine light” on issues and pave the way for change within the company.

She also said it was important to look beyond the content hosted on the platforms in question and look at the broader issues of the system.

“I think it’s very important to focus on the policies and tools of these companies, and not just the content they post,” he notes.

Eisenstadt course

It is noted that before working for six months at Facebook in 2018, Eisenstadt was a CIA officer and special adviser to the Obama White House, dealing with national security issues.

He later served as a global policy advisor for the Center for Humane Technology, a non-profit organization founded by Silicon Valley veterans. In addition, he has worked at research centers such as the Berggruen Institute and, more recently, at the Institute for Security and Technology. He was also a member of the Real Facebook Review Board, a group of critics of the company.

Eisenstadt could also play a key role in the ADL’s technical accountability program and expand the organization’s reach to the White House, where she served as an adviser to Joe Biden when he was vice president.

Eisenstadt says politicians in Washington are becoming “increasingly diligent” in their approach to the tech industry, but adds that more work needs to be done.

“To be clear, I don’t think we’re still there [στον στόχο μας]but I think we are closer,” he says.

He even indicated that he would lead efforts to find a “common ground” with tech companies, which would be the “first target.”

Example of Holocaust deniers

Eisenstadt also addressed how online platforms deal with issues such as material from Holocaust deniers, drawing criticism from Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

“When you see that someone who is in charge of the biggest platform in the world doesn’t understand what Holocaust denial means and doesn’t understand what that entails, that’s where the ADL can play a very constructive role in helping them. understand why there are serious consequences and what could be the right policy regarding this issue,” he explained.

It is recalled that Zuckerberg strongly defended the right of Facebook users to post Holocaust denial in an interview in 2018. The company stuck to this policy for years despite harsh criticism, including from the ADL, until changes in 2020.

^{Source: Washington Post.}