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The Blast: Castro signs letter to Musk, Abbott hopes for OLS expansion [1]

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Date: 2022-11 

CASTRO JOINS OTHER ELECTED DEMOCRATS URGING TWITTER TO RESTORE CONTENT MODERATORS

U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro is one of a number of Democratic lawmakers who penned a letter to Twitter CEO Elon Musk, asking the billionaire (and part-time Texan) to provide information for how the platform is handling content moderation in non-English languages, like Spanish.



The letter comes as Twitter is experiencing a mass exodus of its staff since Musk purchased the social media site earlier this year. About half of the company's employees lost their jobs in October, and many more have since left the company.



“For years, social media companies have tolerated misinformation and harassment in Spanish that would never be allowed in English,” Castro said in a statement. “Today, as Twitter purges the workers responsible for global safety, Spanish speakers are facing an unprecedented surge in threats, hate speech, and disinformation.”



The letter asks Musk for specific information on staffing and content moderation policies, including the number of staff and contract employees who handle content moderation and lost their jobs before November. The Democratic lawmakers requested a response by Dec. 6. — Bobby Blanchard

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[1] Url: https://mailchi.mp/texastribune/the-blast-castro-signs-letter-to-musk-abbott-hopes-for-ols-expansion

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