The Malaysian government is actively negotiating with TikTok to restore 18 media outlets' accounts that were blocked by the platform's artificial intelligence moderation. The accounts, including those of prominent agencies such as Bernama and Buletin TV3, were banned following their coverage of an alleged sexual assault incident involving a young girl at a mosque in Selangor. This situation has prompted the government to request an explanation from TikTok and urge the restoration of the affected accounts.
The blockage of these accounts stems from TikTok’s community guidelines, which strictly prohibit child sexual abuse material. Preliminary investigations indicate that the media outlets' reporting on the alleged sexual assault led to the AI-driven bans. The case is currently under scrutiny pursuant to Section 14 of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017. Videos related to the case gained significant attention over the weekend, escalating the issue's urgency.
Bernama's chief executive, Nur-ul Afida Kamaludin, expressed optimism about the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission's involvement in resolving the matter.
“We are simply reporting an incident that occurred in our country,” – Nur-ul Afida Kamaludin
TikTok had previously informed Malaysian authorities about its intention to enhance AI moderation on its platform. Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil acknowledged the challenges posed by AI's lack of contextual understanding in distinguishing between media reports and other content.
“The problem is TikTok’s artificial intelligence itself … AI can sometimes go too far and not understand that media organisation reporting is different from the content produced by ordinary people,” – Fahmi Fadzil
Minister Fahmi Fadzil has proposed a dialogue with TikTok to potentially offer media organizations more flexibility or a different status on the platform, given their role in creating news reports.
“I see an opportunity here for us to discuss with TikTok to give more flexibility or perhaps give a different status to media companies since they are creating reports and we also have our own guidelines or (codes) of conduct,” – Fahmi Fadzil
As of Monday afternoon, the ban on the accounts remained in place. Meanwhile, the 19-year-old suspect involved in the alleged assault is under remand for seven days to assist with the ongoing police investigation in Selangor.
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