8 years ago
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Discrimination by Airbnb Hosts Is Widespread, Report Says
Airbnb likes to refer to itself as less a company than a “community.” To that end, it has made trust between real people a cornerstone of its business strategy in short-term home rentals. But new research suggests that when users get real, racism can result. A working paper by three Harvard researchers found “widespread discrimination” by hosts against people with black-sounding names seeking rentals. Fictional guests set up by the researchers with names like Lakisha...
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http://www.nytimes.com
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“Access is built on trust, and trust is built on transparency. When you remove anonymity, it brings out the best in people,” Brian Chesky, chief executive of Airbnb, said in 2013. “We believe anonymity has no place in the future of Airbnb or the sharing economy.”
I agree with this completely. I use Airbnb and they basically do a quasi background check on you. They want to know who you are. You also get to rate the host and they in turn get to rate you.