Stanford offered financial reward to report harmful words to campus officials | The College Fix
Many faculty perceive [the Elimination of Harmful Language Initiative] as a broader threat to academic freedom, state the faculty presentation slides, a copy of which was provided to The College Fix.
Seven Stanford web domains were scanned for harmful words last year, a December 2022 news release stated, adding the process for working with content owners for remediation is still in a planning phase.
The financial incentive has since been removed and reworded.
Moreover, the Elimination of Harmful Language Initiative website has been taken down, and media representative Stett Holbrook told The College Fix the initiative is being re-evaluated and is not operational.
The College Fix emailed Holbrook on Feb. 15 and asked if any financial rewards were provided to employees for turning in others for using harmful language. He did not respond.
Stanford engineering Professor Juan Santiago told The Fix the plans to study threats to free speech were put in motion when 77 faculty signed a petition to bring a motion before the Faculty Senate over the winter break.