The FIA has released a White Paper document in a bid to tackle online hate and abuse across all of motorsport.
The document, titled ‘A Strategic Response To Online Hate Speech In Sport’, has been created in conjunction with industry experts, government institutions and all 241 of the FIA’s member clubs.
The FIA feels that “online abuse of its participants, officials and volunteers has reached intolerable levels” so at the request of president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has “committed to adopting a leadership position in addressing this issue in the motorsport ecosystem”.
A dedicated research center into hate speech will be launched by the FIA, while a survey conducted as part of the White Paper’s research found that 80% of people in the EU have been subjected to some form of online hate.
Ben Sulayem said: “The release of our White Paper further underlines the FIA’s commitment to confronting online abuse. With the support of the European Commission and other sporting governing bodies, we are emboldened by a combined determination to bring about meaningful change through concrete action.
“Sustained online toxicity has reached deplorable levels. We will no longer tolerate FIA volunteers, officials, employees and drivers being subjected to this extreme abuse.
“It has no place in our sport and if it continues it could destroy it. We will take a collaborative approach in combatting this scourge on our sport and others.
“We want everyone, the teams, drivers, media and fans to play their part. Only through collaborative action, can we bring about behavioral change.
“We are united against abuse. This journey has only just begun.”
Since September 2022, the FIA has used an AI system to monitor comments across its social media channels, and in doing so managed to reduce the number of hate comments by 66.6%.
The FIA has promised to “reveal further details of a concerted action plan” in the coming months.
