Center for Business and Human Rights

Prof. Michael Posner op-ed: "How To Fight Online Disinformation In The Wake Of A Bitter Election"

Prof. Michael Posner op-ed: "Making The Right To Vote A Reality For All"

Prof. Michael Posner op-ed: "How Tesla Should Combat Child Labor In The Democratic Republic Of The Congo"

Prof. Michael Posner op-ed: "How To Be An Effective Advocate: Lessons Learned From RBG"

A new report from the NYU Stern Center for Business and Human Rights argues that Section 230 should be improved to push internet companies to accept greater responsibility for curbing harmful content

"Instead of this half measure, Facebook should immediately decline to post deliberately false ads whenever political candidates and their supporters, whether Democrats or Republicans, seek to place them on the platform. Similarly, when people post holocaust denial content, as they still do, Facebook should take it down. And Zuckerberg should stop asserting that he allows deliberately false political content on the site because he believes in free speech. This absolutist constraint is at the root of many of the challenges they face and leaves the company with little room to maneuver effectively without contradicting itself."

"Last week, Marjorie Taylor Green easily won a Republican Congressional primary in Georgia and is likely to be elected in November to represent Georgia’s 14th Congressional District. Green is a deeply divisive candidate, who has delivered a steady stream of inflammatory attacks on Muslims, immigrants, African Americans, and Jews. She also is an avid supporter of QAnon, which occupies a dark corner of the internet, and whose followers believe that there is a worldwide network of Satan-worshiping pedophiles who control politicians and the media. With over a dozen Congressional candidates expressing support for QAnon, its growing collection of misguided and often hateful content poses an emerging threat to our democracy. Its explosive growth also underscores the inadequacy of Facebook’s efforts to address this type of political disinformation."

"Yesterday, the State Department’s Commission on Unalienable Rights issued its draft report, the culmination of a yearlong study by a group of scholars and activists, chaired by Mary Ann Glendon of Harvard Law School, and chosen by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. He convened the Commission to elaborate on the core principles framing the US approach to human rights, which Pompeo referred to yesterday as “our enduring dedication to unalienable rights and our tradition of constitutional self-government.” The Commission’s report has some troubling aspects, but what is most striking is the stunning gap between the broad principles the Commission articulates and the dramatic abandonment of these principles by the current administration, both at home and abroad."

"Facebook and the other social media companies are at a crossroads, in this country and around the world. The Stop Hate for Profit campaign shows that business as usual will no longer suffice. As politicians of both parties call for reform, these companies must do more than make public statements and attach labels. Instead, they should reexamine their core business models and accept responsibility for moderating their sites in a way that comports with their values and their public commitments to be a force for good."

In an op-ed, Professor Michael Posner writes about how Northern Ireland could provide a model for reforming American policing.