*HomeU.S. Government Accountability Office*
Menu

      close


          
          
                          	
				
				
	
	
					Reports & Testimonies
									
																				
				
				
	
	
								Reports & Testimonies
													
																												
																						
							
																Recommendations Database
							
																												
																						
							
																Month in Review
							
																												
																						
							
																Order Copies
							
																												
																						
							
																Restricted Reports
							
																												
																						
							
																View Topics
							
																												
																						
							
																View Agencies
							
																												
																						
							
																Bid Protests & Appropriations Law
									
																				
				
				
	
	
								Bid Protests & Appropriations Law
													
																												
																						
							
																Bid Protests
							
																												
																						
							
																Appropriations Law
							
																												
																						
							
																Federal Vacancies Reform Act
							
																												
																						
							
																Other Legal
							
																												
																						
							
																About
									
																				
				
				
	
	
								About
													
																												
																						
							
																What GAO Does
							
																												
																						
							
																U.S. Comptroller General
							
																												
																						
							
																Careers
							
																												
																						
							
																Contact UsFor Congress
                                
                          
        
                Press Center
                                
                          
        
                Careers
                                
                          
        
                BlogSearch < WatchBlog: Following the Federal Dollar
    Online Extremism is a Growing Problem, But What’s Being Done About It? Posted on February 13, 2024
                    A hate crime occurs nearly every hour in the U.S. It’s a growing problem that’s been fueled by hate-filled internet posts on social media and other internet platforms. Many of us have seen news headlines about extremist attacks that were fueled by online hate speech—such as the mass shootings at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina in 2015; a Walmart in El Paso, Texas in 2019; and a nightclub in Colorado Springs, Colorado in 2022.

In a new report, we looked at the connection between hate crimes and online hate speech, and how internet-based companies and law enforcement are combatting these problems. Today’s WatchBlog post looks at our work.

Image
              Close up of a computer keyboard. In the place of the "enter" key is a red colored key with the words "Hate Speech" on it.

**What do we know about the connection between online hate and extremist acts?**

Online hate speech is widespread. It includes prejudiced comments about race, national origin, ethnicity, gender, gender identification, religion, disability, or sexual orientation. Research indicated up to a third of internet users have experienced hate speech online. That number is even higher when looking at just the online gaming community—where about 50% have experienced hate speech.

Those who post hateful or extremist speech online may do so in an effort to spread their ideologies.

Extremist attacks—such as those in Charleston, El Paso, and Colorado Springs—illustrate how exposure to hate speech online may have contributed to the attackers’ biases against people based on race, national origin, and sexual orientation. Additionally, these attacks showed how the internet has offered the perpetrators of such attacks a vehicle for disseminating hateful materials—such as manifestos containing disparaging and racist rhetoric prior to the attacks. The perpetrators of these three attacks were convicted of, or pled guilty to, federal or state hate crimes.

In response to the rise of hate crimes, the FBI has elevated such acts to its highest-level national threat priority. FBI’s designation placed hate crimes at the same priority level as preventing domestic violent extremism. But the government and others are also taking steps to respond to online hate crimes specifically.

**What’s being done to combat online hate?**

In our new report, we looked at how internet companies and the federal government are trying to combat online hate crimes.

We looked at six companies that run online forums and platforms—including social media, livestreaming, and crowdfunding platforms—that are tackling this issue in different ways. Each company has its own definition of content that violates the platform’s terms of use. But every definition prohibited hateful content related to disability, ethnicity, race, and religion.

We also found that each company had a different way of flagging hateful posts. All of the companies used algorithms, to varying degrees, to flag content and remove it. Some also relied on users to identify harmful content.

We also reviewed what the federal government is doing to address hate crimes that may be linked to online hate speech. For example, federal law enforcement agencies have used online hate posts as evidence during prosecutions of those who commit domestic violent extremism incidents and other hate crimes.

The Department of Justice is also collecting data from law enforcement agencies and the public about hate crimes to better understand their prevalence. One way it does this is through an annual national survey of about 150,000 households, which asks questions about potentially underreported crimes like hate crimes. While the survey can help estimate the prevalence of hate crimes, it doesn’t ask specifically about *online* hate crimes. Having this information could greatly inform federal law enforcement’s efforts, including putting resources where they are needed most.

Because of this, we recommended that the Department of Justice consider methods to collect information in the annual survey about hate crimes that occur on the internet.

Learn more about our work about the connection between online hate speech and violent extremism by reading our new report.

GAO’s fact-based, nonpartisan information helps Congress and federal agencies improve government. The WatchBlog lets us contextualize GAO’s work a little more for the public. Check out more of our posts at GAO.gov/blog.
TopicsJustice and Law Enforcement
                        Federal Bureau of Investigation
              Department of Justice
              Bureau of Justice Statistics
                        Hate crime
              Hate crimes
                        Homeland Security and Justice
GAO Contacts
    
      Triana McNeil
      
              Triana McNeil
            
            Director
      
            mcneilt@gao.gov
      
            (202) 512-8777
		
					About WatchblogGAO's mission is to provide Congress with fact-based, nonpartisan information that can help improve federal government performance and ensure accountability for the benefit of the American people. GAO launched its WatchBlog in January, 2014, as part of its continuing effort to reach its audiences—Congress and the American people—where they are currently looking for information.

The blog format allows GAO to provide a little more context about its work than it can offer on its other social media platforms. Posts will tie GAO work to current events and the news; show how GAO’s work is affecting agencies or legislation; highlight reports, testimonies, and issue areas where GAO does work; and provide information about GAO itself, among other things.

Please send any feedback on GAO's WatchBlog to blog@gao.gov.


Receive GAO Updates Stay informed as we add new reports & testimonies.


GAO Logo
      U.S. Government Accountability Office
 Column 1
                            Press Center
                              Contact Us
                              Inspector General
                              Restricted Reports
                              Column 2
                            Copyright & Terms of Use
                              Privacy Policy
                              Accessibility
                              Sitemap
                              Column 3
                            FOIA Requests
                              Scam Alerts
                              No FEAR Act Data
                              Health Care Advisory Committees