The ugly scenes in Southport that took place following a knife attack at a dance school didn’t take place spontaneously. It wasn’t a groundswell of concerned members of the public coming to show solidarity with the families of the victims. Instead it was a mob that had been fuelled by disinformation on social media.

Disinformation that the likes of Nigel Farage used to spread their own pernicious narratives. There was no concern for the victims and their families.

The suspect in the Southport stabbing case has not been named because of his age. There’s no conspiracy. Instead, it is standard practice that has been followed in countless investigations of this nature.

Yet social media platforms not only allowed people to speculate as to the identity of the suspect but also enabled users to peddle pernicious lies. Lies that emboldened unsavoury elements in society.

A young boy helps to sweep Sussex Road in Southport, Merseyside. PIC: James Speakman/PA Wire

Yorkshire had seen lies of a similar nature being pushed out on social media during the Harehills riots a couple of weeks back.

But just as Harehills won’t be defined by agitators peddling lies from hundreds of miles away, Southport will rise above the violent disorder seen on Tuesday night.

In fact, it can already be seen from the clean up operation and how the community there has rallied around the mosque that was attacked by the mob.

The only winners out of this whole sorry episode are the social media companies that not only host disinformation but amplify it to farm more engagement. It is high time that these companies are treated like publishers and held accountable for the content that they host on their platforms.

Southport riots show social media companies need to be held accountable

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