Support NeoGAF

[Xando]

Germanys Sueddeutsche Zeitung spoke to some current and former employees deciding what is fine and what isn't:

Who deletes hate comments, child pornography, and fake news? In SZ-Magazin, members of the Berlin-based team that counts 600 Facebook content reviewers talk about their stressful jobs for the first time. Not only do many of them feel they receive inadequate support, they are employed by an external service provider. A look at a terrible job and top-secret rules of deletion.

In an unremarkable office complex in Berlin, 600 people are working behind closed doors – well hidden from public view – on a job that concerns 28 million people in Germany and 1.8 billion worldwide. The team decides on what can be posted on Facebook and what can’t. For the first time, employees have spoken out about their emotionally taxing work and the rules of deletion that Facebook has kept under wraps until now.

Facebook began deleting posts from Berlin in the fall of 2015 with the help of Arvato, a Bertelsmann subsidiary. But even in the face of pressure from the German Ministry of Justice, the company refused to disclose the details of specific rules of deletion, or comment on the qualifications of the employees who check every single reported post. Over the course of their month-long research, SZ-Magazin journalists managed to speak to a number of current and former members of the Berlin deletion team.

The employees who spoke to SZ-Magazin are not allowed to talk to reporters or the authorities. However, they wanted to make their working conditions known. These people are paid to delete offensive Facebook posts as quickly as possible – and they often feel inadequately prepared and left alone to deal with the psychological fallout of their work. Many complained that guidelines regarding what should or shouldn’t be deleted were unclear, and that they were stressed and overworked. A number of employees also reported major psychological issues as a result of frequent exposure to shocking contents that included images of torture, murder, or child abuse – and they were not provided access to professional help.

These were some of the things they said:

“I’ve seen things that made me seriously question my faith in humanity. Things like torture and bestiality.“

“Since I saw child pornography videos, I may as well have become a nun. I can’t even handle the idea of sex any more. I haven’t been intimate with my partner for over a year. I start shaking the moment he touches me.”

“I know that someone has to do this job. But it should be people who’ve received proper training, and who get help when they need it. They shouldn’t just be thrown into the deep end like we have.”

“The rules are almost impossible to understand. I’ve said to my team leader: this is crazy! The picture is full of blood and brutality, no one should have to see that. But he said: that’s just your opinion. You have to try and think about what Facebook wants. We’re expected to think like machines.”

Employees told our reporters the following:

- More than 600 people from different countries work for Arvato in Berlin on behalf of Facebook.

- There are teams for the following languages, among others: Arabic, Turkish, Italian, and French. Many of the employees do not speak German.

- The content reviewer’s salary is just slightly above the legal minimum wage.

- The Arabic team includes refugees who fled the war in Syria and are working shifts viewing videos of decapitations and terror propaganda.

- All of the employees interviewed mentioned strict, unclear guidelines that often changed.

- Employees at the bottom of the hierarchy are expected to check 2000 posts per day.

- Employees higher up the ladder who also review videos only have about eight seconds to decide whether or not to delete a post.

SZ has also gained access to most of the secret rules of deletion that determine which contents are removed from Facebook. The company has come up with its own internally defined version of freedom of expression. The rules specify exactly what has be censored and what is allowed to circulate. Facebook categorically refuses to comment on how these rules are developed.

The rulebook comprises hundreds of examples and details. For instance, it states that the contents of an image itself is not decisive. Rather, the combination of picture and text determines whether or not a post is deleted. As an example, it refers to comments that glorify violence. If someone writes “Check this out – so cool” or “Fuck yeah” under a picture that shows someone dying, the rule is that such pictures have to be deleted. The documents also include clear instructions on how to deal with xenophobia. For instance, comments that refer to migrants as “dirty thieves” are allowed, as only comments that label people “terrorists, murderers, or sex offenders” are removed from Facebook. Sentences that compare migrants with dirt or vermin are only deleted if the comparison is in the noun form (“migrants are dirt”)

Facebook Germany generally also responds to SZ-Magazin’s written requests for comment either with vague answers or the following sentence: “We do not comment on such matters”.

http://international.sueddeutsche.de/post/154513473995/inside-facebook

 

[KDR_11k]

 

[fertygo]

Yeah I agree there should've trained group to delete that kind of shit

I can't imagine doing the job..

 

[Gormless Noodle]

Aaaaah, Arvato. One of my former employers, doesn't surprise me in the LEAST that they make unprepared and untrained employees do something like this.

 

[Xando]

I can't imagine doing the job..

Must be horrible.
Imagine watching torture, beheadings and stuff for 8 hours straight every day.

 

[nin1000]

- The Arabic team includes refugees who fled the war in Syria and are working shifts viewing videos of decapitations and terror propaganda.

This is just saddening to read

 

[GeoNeo]

Facebook is a fucking sick sick joke.

The documents also include clear instructions on how to deal with xenophobia. For instance, comments that refer to migrants as “dirty thieves” are allowed, as only comments that label people “terrorists, murderers, or sex offenders” are removed from Facebook. Sentences that compare migrants with dirt or vermin are only deleted if the comparison is in the noun form (“migrants are dirt”)

- The content reviewer’s salary is just slightly above the legal minimum wage.

- The Arabic team includes refugees who fled the war in Syria and are working shifts viewing videos of decapitations and terror propaganda.

 

[Mendrox]

Perfect.

And wow fucking horrible.

 

[Sölf]

Man, Facebook is a cesspool of everything that is wrong. And no professional help? Yeah, sure, that costs money and time, we can't do that, right? Seriously...

 

[Dot Matrix]

I'm gonna start reporting pics of kittens just to give these guys a few seconds respite.