Social media platforms like Facebook “have played a major role in exacerbating political polarization that can lead to such extremist violence,” according to a new report from researchers at New York University’s Stern Center for Business and Human Rights.That may not seem like a surprising conclusion, but Facebook has long tried to downplay its role in fueling divisiveness. The company says that existing research shows that “social media is not a primary driver of harmful polarization.” But in their report, NYU’s researchers write that “research focused more narrowly on the years since 2016 suggests that widespread use of the major platforms has exacerbated partisan hatred.”To make their case, the authors highlight numerous studies examining the links between polarization and social media. They also interviewed dozens of researchers, and at least one Facebook executive, Yann Le Cun, Facebook’s top AI scientist.While the report is careful to point out that
