社交媒体平台多年来一直在限制血腥暴力内容。现在特朗普政府计划直播公开处决，这可能考验它们愿意执行这些规则的程度。
Social media platforms have spent years restricting graphic violence. Now the Trump administration’s plan to livestream a public execution could test how far they’re willing to enforce those rules.
国防部长皮特·赫格塞斯和五角大楼表示，他们将于12月3日直播陆军少校尼达尔·马利克·哈桑的枪决过程。这将是美国首次在线直播死刑执行，而这些公司尚未表示它们是否会托管该直播，或删除用户上传的副本。
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the Pentagon have said they will livestream the firing squad execution of Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan on Dec. 3. It would be the first time a U.S. death sentence is broadcast online, and the companies have yet to say whether they would host the stream or remove users’ copies of it.
“这些公司会等到最后一刻才告诉公众它们的决定，因为它们知道特朗普可能会收回这一计划，”科技咨询公司Anchor Change的创始人、前Meta公共政策总监凯蒂·哈巴斯对《政治》杂志说。
“The companies will wait until the very last minute to tell the public what they’ll do because they know there could be a chance that Trump pulls back on it,” Katie Harbath, founder of the tech consulting firm Anchor Change and a former public policy director at Meta, told POLITICO.
全球各地的社交媒体平台正面临日益增加的压力，要求其保护儿童免受血腥暴力内容的侵害。计划中的直播处决正在考验这一义务：欧洲监管机构警告科技公司不要直播该处决，而澳大利亚立法者则呼吁监管机构阻止社交媒体上的直播。
Social media platforms are already under mounting pressure around the world to protect children from graphic and violent content. The planned livestreamed execution is putting that obligation to the test: European regulators are warning tech companies against broadcasting the livestream, while Australian lawmakers are calling regulators to prevent broadcasts on social media.
包括TikTok、埃隆·马斯克的X、亚马逊的Twitch、Alphabet的YouTube以及Meta的Facebook和Instagram在内的主要平台，都有限制死亡和暴力描绘的政策。例如，Meta的政策明确禁止直播死刑。但这些公司也与特朗普政府有关联，这可能影响它们在美国的运营能力以及对AI政策的影响。TikTok的一位发言人将《政治》杂志引向了该公司禁止展示枪击死亡的政策。
The major platforms, including TikTok, Elon Musk’s X, Amazon’s Twitch, Alphabet’s YouTube, and Meta’s Facebook and Instagram all have policies restricting depictions of death and violence. Meta’s policy, for example, explicitly prohibits livestreams of capital punishments. But the companies also have ties to the Trump administration, which can affect their ability to operate in the U.S. and influence on AI policy. A TikTok spokesperson pointed POLITICO to the company’s policies against showing shooting deaths.
其他公司均未对多次置评请求作出回应，以表明他们是否会执行其平台关于上传特朗普政府公开处决内容的规定。专家告诉《国会山报》，他们认为这一决定可能取决于中期选举以及执行或搁置这些规则的政治后果。
None of the other companies responded to multiple requests for comment on whether they would enforce their platform’s rules about uploads of the Trump administration’s public execution. Experts told POLITICO they believe the decision could hinge on the midterm elections and the political consequences of enforcing — or setting aside — their rules.
计划中的直播引发了民主党和共和党的反对。特朗普总统和副总统JD·万斯也对其表示怀疑。专家表示，如果民主党赢得国会控制权，允许广播的平台可能会因看似无视自身政策而受到审查。
The planned livestream has drawn opposition from both Democrats and Republicans. President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance have also expressed doubts about it. If Democrats win control of Congress, platforms that allow broadcast could face scrutiny for appearing to disregard their own policies, experts said.
“表面看来，直播处决将违反几乎所有主要平台关于暴力描绘的政策。但每个平台也为自己保留了一些余地，以容纳具有新闻价值或其他值得关注的内容，”斯坦福法学院副教授、专注于互联网监管和第一修正案权利的伊夫琳·杜克对《国会山报》表示。“这些例外情况的适用历史表明，归根结底，这些政策更多是关于政治而非原则。平台将做出它们认为最具政治便利性的决定。”
“On its face, livestreaming an execution would violate almost every major platform's policies about depictions of violence. But every platform also preserves for itself some wiggle room for newsworthy or otherwise notable content,” Evelyn Douek, an associate professor at Stanford Law School who focuses on internet regulations and First Amendment rights, told POLITICO. “The history of how these exceptions have been applied show that at the end of the day these policies are more about politics than about principle. The platforms will do what they view as most politically expedient.”
科技平台历来迅速删除公开处决的视频，这些视频常被恐怖组织传播。但专家表示，美国政府的处决令提出了不同的挑战，因为公司无论是播放还是阻止该广播，都可能面临反弹。
Tech platforms have historically worked quickly to remove videos of public executions, which are often circulated by terrorist organizations. But an execution order by the U.S. government presents a different challenge, experts said, because the companies could face backlash either for carrying a broadcast or blocking it.
“发布此类内容让社交媒体服务陷入两难境地，”圣克拉拉大学法学院教授、该校达塔高科技法中心联合主任埃里克·戈德曼对《政治》杂志说。“许多人对政府最初选择直播该内容感到震惊。”转播该内容的法律风险似乎有限。《通信法》第230条通常保护科技公司免于因用户发布的内容承担责任。平台也可能主张该处决具有新闻价值或历史意义，即使这与其规定相冲突。
“The social media services are in a no-win position when it comes to publishing content like this,” Eric Goldman, a professor at Santa Clara University’s School of Law and co-director of the school’s Datta Center for High Tech Law, told POLITICO. “Many people are horrified by the government’s choice to livestream the content in the first place.”The legal risks for carrying the broadcast appear limited. Section 230 of the Communications Act generally protects tech companies from liability for content posted by users. Platforms could also argue that the execution is newsworthy or historically significant, even if it conflicts with their rules.
陆军有规定禁止18岁以下的人目睹军事处决。但执行将落到国防部，专家表示国防部不太可能对其自身的直播采取行动。
The Army has regulations barring people younger than 18 from witnessing a military execution. But enforcement would fall to the Defense Department, which experts said is unlikely to act against its own broadcast.
“他们不必担心太多，因为有《通信法》第230条，而且执行机构是特朗普政府，”维兰诺瓦大学法学院教授布伦纳·菲塞尔说，他专攻刑法和军事法。“而且首席执行官们都在白宫聚会。”阻止直播或限制其传播可能带来政治成本。YouTube曾支付2450万美元以与特朗普就暂停其账户的诉讼达成和解；Meta在类似和解中支付了2500万美元；X支付了1000万美元。万斯表示他不计划观看该处决，但菲塞尔说，拒绝转播该内容的平台仍可能面临报复。
“They don’t have much to worry about because of Section 230, and also the enforcement apparatus is the Trump administration,” said Brenner Fissell, a Villanova Law professor who specializes in criminal and military law. “And the CEOs are all hanging out at the White House.”Blocking the stream or limiting its reach could carry political costs. YouTube paid $24.5 million to settle a lawsuit with Trump over suspending his account; Meta paid $25 million in a similar settlement, and X paid $10 million. Vance has said he does not plan to watch the execution, but a platform that refused to carry it could still face retaliation, Fissell said.
“如果某家科技公司拒绝允许直播，我完全可以看到这会导致某种报复，”菲塞尔说。
“If one of the tech companies refused to permit livestreaming, I could easily see that leading to some sort of retaliation,” Fissell said.