Mob violence against Palestinians in Israel is fueled by WhatsApp groups

nytimes.com

35 points·ComputerGuru··6 comments

No it isn't, it's fueled by primitive tribalism that has plagued our species since times immemorial. Whatsapp is no more culpable than TCP or ink.

Sure, in the same way that the trigger doesn't kill anyone, it's the bullet.

Not really, this is closer to saying that the trigger on “Beretta M9 Serial No. 371758” doesn’t kill anyone. If WhatsApp didn’t exist, any other E2E encrypted messenger would have been used.

Depends on how the company ran. Fast.ai did a great study showing how some social media os designed to radacalize people. They show it as an ethics warning in chapter 6 of their course before the chapter on generative AI. If they train models to increase engagement, said model does not care what kind of engagement it is. So facebook and youtube start the cycle of extremism before whatsapp or other apps get used to coordinate.

Which E2E encrypted, global, instant messenger was used pre-1990?

You're right that the brand name of the messenger is not the important detail, but there is a new dynamic with this conflict.

while the facts in this article are mostly true, i think its dishonest to pretend only one side is uniquely violent towards the other

while in fact massive mobs commited deadly violence against jewish israeli citizens while coordinating on mostly telegram

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