by: Jen Kerns
- (General Dispatch) False claimst have been spreading across the platform with vaccines being a cause of autism or its safer to contract the virus rather than to receive vaccinations.
- Posts that had been deflated by World Health Organization (WHO) will be permanently removed, as stated by Facebook.
- Kang-Xing Jin, head of health at Facebook, announced that the company is ramping its campaign to spread valid information regarding Covid-19 vaccines and to encourage people to get vaccinated when available.
- The company already called on WHO to get a list of posts and false claims regarding Covid-19 vaccines within the platform.
- Facebook Oversight Board, an independent board that evaluates Facebook Policy, stated that the company is in need to create new rules for it is completely uncertain.
- Facebook also offered $120 million for spreading reliable Covid-19 vaccine information and giving credits to health ministries and nongovernmental organizations.
- Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook, was once a supporter of free speech, and unwilling to call out fake information, even if it is potentially dangerous.
- Public health advocates criticized Facebook for refusing to remove invalid information regarding Covid-19 vaccines.
- Facebook tried to update their policy but loopholes are inevitable due to exploitation of misinformation spreaders.
- Facebook also stated that they will change their search tools to advocate relevant and valid information regarding Covid-19 vaccines.
Reference Links:
Breitbart – Facebook Will Remove Posts with ‘Misleading’ Vaccine Claims
NBC News – Facebook to remove more false coronavirus claims from platform
