U.S. presses TikTok, Meta and X to crack down on antisemitic posts, Bloomberg News reports

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(Reuters) – The Biden administration is urging big technology companies to ramp up efforts to curb antisemitic content on their platforms, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday.

Representatives from companies including Alphabet, Meta, Microsoft, TikTok and X met on Thursday with U.S. special envoy Deborah Lipstadt to monitor and combat antisemitism.

Lipstadt requested that each company designate a policy team member to address the issue and conduct training for key personal to identify antisemitism and publicly report trends in anti-Jewish content.

“We welcomed this convening and were pleased to come together to share facts about the ongoing steps TikTok takes on this important issue and to continue to learn from experts in the room,” a TikTok spokesperson said.

Alphabet, Microsoft, Meta and X did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.

Countries around the world have seen a rise in antisemitism following the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on southern Israel and subsequent bombardment of the Gaza Strip by the Israeli military.

The companies have not yet agreed to voluntary moves, but the administration is hopeful they will act soon, Lipstadt told Bloomberg News.

The administration is also requesting staff training in order to help identify more implicit antisemitic messages on online platforms and to differentiate between criticism of the Israeli government and hatred directed at Jews, Lipstadt added.

(Reporting by Zaheer Kachwala in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)