I keep hearing that additional social networks will solve the problem. How exactly do additional social networks solve this problem? Won't they be even more inclined to serve addictive content under the threat of cut throat competition. For example, WhatsApp too used a lot for propagation of rumours. How will additional social networks make people immune from their biases, or magically neutralize all the extrme opinion on the internet. How will additional social networks magically verify facts?
Additional social networks will prevent Facebook from imposing a one-size-fits-all speech policy on the entire world. Yes, some countries' social networks will be filled with hate speech and conspiracy theories. Other countries will ban such speech, just like Germany bans Nazi memorabilia. Yet other countries will err towards allowing a free marketplace of ideas, like the US does with its First Amendment guarantees.
Facebook cannot and should not be the one attempting to reconcile cultural norms across the entire world into a single speech code that satisfies everyone.
I wouldn't trust my own government with moderating the social network activity of our nation. They are so corrupt that I can't even begin to describe. It's better in the hands of a multinational, at least their interests are related to ads, not political suppression :(
In my opinion the problem with social networks is just the effect of an underlying cause, which is that many people are so poor, uneducated, sick or old that they only care about the immediate future. Religious and inflexible people will believe anything that reaffirms their beliefs. They will bite at all fake news and spread it around and vote in a disastrous way for the future of the country.
Unfortunately there will always be a part of the population that lacks long term concern. You can't improve social networks when people are lacking long term concern, which is usually the domain of young educated professionals, who have the most to lose from this folly.
