Author: Casey Newton
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
One of the more hopeful developments at tech platforms this year has been their investment in removing misinformation related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter were all relatively quick to acknowledge the threat that COVID hoaxes represent, and have worked to purge it from their networks. Enforcement of those misinformation policies has sometimes lagged behind the companies’ public statements, though. A piece of anti-vaccination agitprop catchily titled “Plandemic” racked up millions of views before it was spotted and taken down by the platforms in May. More worryingly, a new piece of propaganda pushing a phony COVID cure was seen by 20 million people on Facebook alone before the company got it under control.
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One of the more hopeful developments at tech platforms this year has been their investment in removing misinformation related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter were all relatively quick to acknowledge the threat that COVID hoaxes represent, and have worked to purge it from their networks. Enforcement of those misinformation policies has sometimes lagged behind the companies’ public statements, though. A piece of anti-vaccination agitprop catchily titled “Plandemic” racked up millions of views before it was spotted and taken down by the platforms in May. More worryingly, a new piece of propaganda pushing a phony COVID cure was seen by 20 million people on Facebook alone before the company got it under control.
On...
Continue reading…
Continue reading...