Airbnb has tweaked its rules and reservation system to lessen discrimination:
Online rental marketplace Airbnb will address reports of widespread racial discrimination against non-white guests by displaying photos less prominently on its website, promoting instant bookings and changing some of its technology, according to a report commissioned by the company. The report, released on Thursday, followed months of criticism of Airbnb, sparked partly by comments under Twitter hashtag #AirbnbWhileBlack about discrimination against black people. "Bias and discrimination have no place on Airbnb, and we have zero tolerance for them," Chief Executive Officer Brian Chesky wrote in an email to users. "Unfortunately, we have been slow to address these problems, and for this I am sorry."
Before the end of the year, Airbnb will roll out changes to its reservation request system that emphasize trip details, reviews and verified IDs while testing various formats that downplay users' photos, said the report from Laura Murphy & Associates. San Francisco-based Airbnb will also expand its instant book program, which allows guests who meet preferences preset by hosts to make reservations without prior approval, to 1 million of its 2 million listings by January. Under that program, hosts can require guests to provide Airbnb with government issued ID or have or a 4.5 out of 5 star rating to be approved for booking. Hosts can also cancel bookings without paying a fee if they have issues with guests' behavior. The company will also implement technology that prevents hosts from booking new guests if they tell another guest their listing is unavailable for the same time frame.
Also at The New York Times , which notes that the company had hired former Attorney General Eric Holder and other advisers such as the former head of the ACLU's D.C. Legislative Office Laura Murphy and civil rights attorney John Relman to help design the new policies.
Here is the report Laura Murphy submitted to Airbnb, entitled Airbnb's Work to Fight Discrimination and Build Inclusion (32 page PDF).
(Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @07:33PM
But I still want to make a shitton of fucking money! Why won't airbnb let me be a greedy racist!! Dude bro the sharing economy isn't disruptive enough without racism!!!
(Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @08:03PM
Who would? They ruin every neighborhood you put them in. They're almost as bad as self-loathing white male SJWs who love to make themselves feel superior by destroying hypothetical strawmen.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @08:08PM
Yow! destroying hypothetical strawmen feels so QUIXOTIC
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @08:10PM
It does however pave the way for a competing service, and will make a ghetto out of one or the other.
One of the arguments for the Civil Rights Act was that change would not have happened on a wide basis, which is why anti-discrimination laws were needed.
Airbnb does not have the authority of the government (and laws concerning renting a private residence are very lax), which opens Airbnb up to people taking their ball and going elsewhere.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @08:21PM
By some astonishing coincidence, the Civil Rights Act suffered a significant loss of public approval some time around 2008-2009.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @08:35PM
It's arguable whether the Civil Rights Act made any significant advances socially, and probably galvanized a degree of racism that won't be going away any time soon.
But as far regulating business, equality before the law is a cornerstone, I just doubt Airbnb has the authority to dictate to the market in any meaningful way.
(Score: 1) by garrulus on Saturday September 10 2016, @09:02PM
you probably meant this ironically, which is sad
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @11:25PM
Yeah there are way too many non-ironic posts on this story.
Confirming all the worst stereotypes of soylent users.
Ironic.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 11 2016, @05:07PM
"Your" wife already does.
Keep that cuckold shed dormitory in repair faggot white boi.
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @07:37PM
Someone in DAYTON, Ohio is selling USED CARPETS to a SERBO-CROATIAN
(Score: 3, Touché) by Username on Saturday September 10 2016, @08:14PM
Why are they discriminating against people without IDs? Who needs pictures? It’s none of their business if I’m a murdering, raping, fugitive from justice, illegal alien. They need to accept people no matter what.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @08:26PM
Sorry no Uber for you. Have you tried the city bus instead? Government subsidized public transportation is your next-to-last-resort before walking.
Oh sorry the topic is lodging. No Airbnb for you. Have you tried a hotel instead?
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @08:28PM
I was going to troll this thread with racist crap, but the racists got here first. Oh well.
Screw it! I'm here, I'm a troll, get used to it!
Why is AirBNB being so stupid? I don't know why anyone would want apes in their house anyway.
Everyone knows that the black are animals, without sense enough to even use the toilet. They just shit on the floor, just like they do in their own homes.
What's even worse is that once they get into your home, they'll just come back to rob it later -- or not even bother to wait.
They should just use AirBNB for niggers [cca.com].
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @08:41PM
Yeah, you know, it just isn't very funny the second time around. Sorry.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @10:44PM
Yeah, you know, it just isn't very funny the second time around. Sorry.
What can I do? I am a troll [wikipedia.org] after all.
C'est la vie, eh?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @08:42PM
What's even worse is that once they get into your home, they'll just come back to rob it later -- or not even bother to wait.
Oh you're such a comedian. Have you seen Eating Raoul [wikipedia.org]?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @08:47PM
Have you ever heard Patrice O'Neal describe why ghettos are so ghetto?
Anyone going past public housing doesn't need much prodding that they don't want that in their house.
Even blacks discriminate against blacks.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @08:58PM
Yes it's always so queer to hear the rich black folk discriminate against the poor niggas and hear the rich niggas sing about how they gonna be rich black folk as soon as they have money.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @09:41PM
It's less the money than ownership. Several of those folks in the ghetto are making bank with most everything being subsidized; they can blow wads of cash on everything but making a nicer neighborhood. Shit on the floor? Fuck it, it ain't mine.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @11:41PM
*bingo*
I think we have a winner. Encourage ownership, and you'll see something different.
Some of the most disgusting houses I've been in were white renters. Rotting dog shit in the hallways. Clutter and mess all over the place.
Of course, ownership only make sense if you've made it to the middle class and have a steady job that's going to be there in 10 years…. My grandfather worked in a tool and die factory from the time he was 15 until he was 65 with nothing but an 8th grade education. Owned a two story home in a small town. Just looked up some properties for sale around there, and these are currently $100,000 - $150,000 homes.
Homework assignment: Gran Torino [imdb.com].
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @11:54PM
Of course, ownership only make sense if you've made it to the middle class and have a steady job that's going to be there in 10 years….
Anything except the tech industry, brown collar work for twentysomethings. Over 30, you're fired, never work again.
(Score: 2) by Reziac on Sunday September 11 2016, @02:16AM
Clearly you have never been to a trailer park, or to Bakersfield, or south San Diego, or the many other places where people DO own their homes, but nonetheless the place is a slum. Explain that?
And there is no Alkibiades to come back and save us from ourselves.
(Score: 2) by t-3 on Sunday September 11 2016, @05:32AM
Saying that people in trailer parks own their homes is a bit much... The contracts to most places make it pretty clear that even if you own the trailer, you can't leave with it, at least not without paying for it again and going through a bunch of legal and financial hassle.
(Score: 2) by Reziac on Sunday September 11 2016, @05:48AM
Not unless they're different from what I've seen. Problem is so many get behind on the rent that the lien clauses kick in (given mobile homes are legally "vehicles" unless they've been put on a permanent foundation).
And there is no Alkibiades to come back and save us from ourselves.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 11 2016, @06:10AM
GP here. I haven't been to Bakersfield or San Diego, I admit. I grew up in a mobile home, now that you mention it. I considered buying one before I bought my house, but I declined. (I also admit I'm speaking from a position of privilege, whatever privilege comes from starting from nothing, thrown out of home homeless because I wasn't who my parents wished me to be, and sacrificing everything just to wind up yet another wage slave.) It's the lot rent that's the problem with mobile home communities. Sure, you own the trailer, but not the land. So you pay some rent vampire above and way beyond property tax for parking your trailer there for 10, 20, 30 years.
It doesn't make sense, renting the land only or renting the whole package. (My parents were idiots.) Do you have data on ownership vs. rentership for Bakersfield and south San Diego?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 11 2016, @05:42AM
If your rent is subsidized to $200/month, do you have any reason to own?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 11 2016, @05:11PM
Those white renters want to torture to death any white male that would even think about marrying a girl child.
White = scumsucking woman worshipers. Aka a dog.
Why would a dog care about rotting dog shit?
(Prior to the popularization of the "white race", when there were just european nationalities, men could marry female children)
(Score: 1) by garrulus on Saturday September 10 2016, @09:00PM
disgusting convergence
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @09:19PM
Please enjoy the ads though.
(Score: 4, Informative) by Entropy on Sunday September 11 2016, @05:15AM
I think this would be a wonderful opportunity to pause for a moment and give thanks for the great contributions of the ___ community to our society. Their peaceful and generous nature make them ideal neighbors, lending testimony to their exceptional family values and parenting skills unrivaled by any other culture. Their commitment to academic excellence enriches our schools and serves as an example to all who hope to achieve prominence as a people. Real estate values are fueled by the mix of ___ into an area due to their caring and respectful nature of these communities, an example of all they have achieved through their enthusiasm for self improvement by hard work and a self-reliant can-do nature. Without their industrious and creative drive, we would be poorer as a nation.
Feel free to fill in the blank.
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 11 2016, @05:39AM
Any immigrant neighborhood.
Race matters less than culture, and especially people that have come here seeking a better life make fine neighbors.
Most criticisms of (insert race) have more to do with culture. There is a world of difference between first generation Mexicans and third generation welfare trash.
(Score: 2) by bradley13 on Sunday September 11 2016, @12:51PM
As always, the root of the problem is the concept of a "public accommodation".
- It is correct for the government to be required to treat everyone equally, regardless of eye color, hair color, skin color, or whatever.
- It is the right individuals to decide who they want to associate with, who they want to invite into their house, or whatever.
Privately owned businesses fall in between. US law declares them to be "public accommodation", meaning that they are subject to the same rules as the government.
Personally, I think this is wrong. If a business wants to serve only blond haired, blue eyes women? That should be their decision. Choosing your clientele bring advantages and disadvantages. Certainly, if I were renting my house out via Airbnb, there are some groups of people who are a lot riskier to rent to than others. It's entirely understandable that people don't want to take risks, when renting out their homes. This may even be legal. While Airbnb itself is clearly a business, many of the people renting on it are not - they're just earning a bit of beer money, or maybe looking to host interesting people.
If Airbnb manages to hide what kind of people individual renters are, they will drive away anyone who is renting their place out casually. They will be left only with the professional renters who are - in actual fact - just hotels dodging regulations.
Everyone is somebody else's weirdo.