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Combating online hate speech: The impact of legislation on Twitter

Author

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  • Andres, Raphaela
  • Slivko, Olga

Abstract

We analyze the impact of the Network Enforcement Act, the first regulation which aims at restraining hate speech on large social media platforms. Using a difference-in- differences framework, we measure the causal impact of the German law on the prevalence of hateful content on German Twitter. We find evidence of a significant and robust decrease in the intensity and volume of hate speech in tweets tackling sensitive migration-related topics. Importantly, tweets tackling other topics as well as the tweeting style of users are not affected by the regulation, which is in line with its aim. Our results highlight that legislation for combating harmful online content can influence the prevalence of hate speech even in the presence of platform governance mechanisms.

Suggested Citation

  • Andres, Raphaela & Slivko, Olga, 2021. "Combating online hate speech: The impact of legislation on Twitter," ZEW Discussion Papers 21-103, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:zewdip:21103
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. La Ferrara, Eliana & DellaVigna, Stefano, 2015. "Economic and Social Impacts of the Media," CEPR Discussion Papers 10667, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    2. Yi Liu & Pinar Yildirim & Z. John Zhang, 2021. "Social Media, Content Moderation, and Technology," Papers 2101.04618, arXiv.org, revised Jan 2021.
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    Cited by:

    1. Jiménez Durán, Rafael & Muller, Karsten & Schwarz, Carlo, 2024. "The Effect of Content Moderation on Online and Offline Hate: Evidence from Germany’s NetzDG," CAGE Online Working Paper Series 701, Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy (CAGE).
    2. Beknazar-Yuzbashev, George & Jiménez-Durán, Rafael & McCrosky, Jesse & Stalinski, Mateusz, 2025. "Toxic Content and User Engagement on Social Media: Evidence from a Field Experiment," CAGE Online Working Paper Series 741, Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy (CAGE).
    3. George Beknazar-Yuzbashev & Rafael Jiménez-Durán & Jesse McCrosky & Mateusz Stalinski, 2025. "Toxic Content and User Engagement on Social Media: Evidence from a Field Experiment," CESifo Working Paper Series 11644, CESifo.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Social Networks; User-Generated Content; Hate Speech; Policy Evaluation;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H41 - Public Economics - - Publicly Provided Goods - - - Public Goods
    • J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
    • K42 - Law and Economics - - Legal Procedure, the Legal System, and Illegal Behavior - - - Illegal Behavior and the Enforcement of Law
    • L82 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Entertainment; Media
    • L86 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Information and Internet Services; Computer Software

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