The First Minister of Scotland, John Swinney has written to three social media platforms –  X, Meta and TikTok – about “the impact of social media in spreading misinformation.” This is in relation to the appalling riots which have taken place in England.

The FM met with representatives of faith and refugee groups, and Police Scotland,  to discuss the feelings of threat and alarm that have arisen in communities because of the spread of misinformation on these social media platforms.

In his letter John Swinney states that Police Scotland “described social media posts that contain deliberate misinformation, with provocative and incendiary language with some potentially meeting the threshold for charge under Scotland’s hate crime legislation that came into effect in April this year.”

The FM believes that X, Meta and TikTok “have a specific responsibility” to prevent the spread of misinformation and has asked them what steps they are taking to do so.

Social media can be a tool for both good and bad, posts which are designed to stir up hatred and violence can spread very quickly reaching a target audience ripe for such misinformation.

All media, however, has a responsibility in how incidents are reported, the language and images used, and the prominence they give to those whose agenda it is to stir up hatred for their own political ends. Mainstream television, streamed directly into homes, some of it publicly funded by the tax payer, has played a significant role in giving a platform to the views of political parties like Reform UK and their agenda of hate. The mantra of ‘Stop the boats’ was used by both Conservative and Labour UK parties in their election propaganda.

Whilst posts on social media can travel quickly to reach their intended audience, all media and those of us who use it, whether to keep in contact with family, or to look for the best offers on sale sites, need to be aware of how our actions, when we share posts, comment, or react, affect how the information it carries, will be spread. Most recent example being ITV’s ‘Douglas is Cancelled’.

And returning to social media. The meeting of the First Minister with community groups was posted on social media X and retweeted by John Swinney. The initial tweet didn’t go far but once it was shared by the FM then it had a much wider reach. And that is how social media works – what you share, react to, and comment on, will determine how far a post will travel. We all share in the responsibility for ensuring disinformation and hate are not given the opportunity to spread.

Fiona Grahame