Facebook is backing down: it no longer bans publications on the human origin of the coronavirus

Facebook posts claiming COVID-19 was “man-made” will no longer be removed, the social media giant announced on Wednesday, in a decision that recognizes the renewed debate on the origins of the virus.

“The light at ongoing investigations on the origin of COVID-19 and in consultation with public health experts, we will no longer remove the claim that COVID-19 is man-made from our applicationsA Facebook spokesperson said in a statement. “We continue to work with health experts to keep us abreast of evolving nature of the pandemic and periodically update our policies as new facts and trends emerge ”.

The announcement marks a turning point for the social media giant. In February, Facebook announced it would be removing publications claiming that the virus was man-made or was created in the laboratory “After consultation with major health organizations, including the World Health Organization”, which had “debunked” the allegation.

Facebook’s decision now marks the first major sign Big social media companies are reviewing their rules as research increasingly shows that SARS-CoV-2 She was born in a laboratory in Wuhan, the Chinese city where the epidemic began.

Public calls for further investigation into the origins of the pandemic have intensified particularly in recent days, after the the Wall Street newspaper inform that three researchers from the Wuhan Institute of Virology they had symptoms severe enough to seek hospital treatment. A State Department document indicated that investigators had “Symptoms consistent with both Covid-19 and the common seasonal flu.”

The results gave wings to the theory of the virus leak from the Wuhan lab, which until now had been dismissed as a conspiracy theory.

Monday, the American president Joe biden He said he ordered a report from his national security adviser on the origins of the virus, including the possibility that it emerged after a lab accident, shortly after taking office. Biden said he asked intelligence officials to report their findings within 90 days.

Facebook’s move also comes after social media companies intense pressure from Congressional Democrats to crack down on false information about the virus during the pandemic; In March, House of Representatives lawmakers summoned CEOs of Facebook, Twitter and Google for a hearing on the matter.

Spokesmen for Twitter and YouTube have yet to announce any changes to their policies regarding posts about the origin of the coronavirus.

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