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LONDON (AP) – Facebook is adding informational labels to vaccine posts as it ramps up efforts to counter COVID-19-related misinformation flourishing on its platforms.
CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a blog post Monday that the labels will contain “credible information” on vaccines from the World Health Organization. They will be in English and five other languages, with more languages to be added in the coming weeks.
“For example, we are adding a label on articles that discuss the safety of COVID-19 vaccines that says COVID-19 vaccines go through safety and efficacy testing before being approved,” Zuckerberg said. .
The social network is also adding a tool to help users get vaccinated by connecting them to information about where and when they can get vaccinated.
Facebook and Instagram have been criticized for allowing the spread of anti-vaccination propaganda and for being appallingly slow in eliminating misinformation, often with fact checks, labels and other restraints.
“This announcement falls well short of what is needed to resolve the crisis of anti-vaccine lies that are polluting the timelines of social media users,” said Imran Ahmed, CEO of the nonprofit Center for Combating Hate digital, critical of social media business management. hate speech and disinformation.
“Facebook and Instagram are still not removing the vast majority of posts flagged to them for containing dangerous misinformation about vaccines,” she said. . And the evidence suggests that the way Facebook applies labels to disinformation posts has minimal impact. “
For years, Facebook and other social platforms have allowed anti-vaccination propaganda to flourish, making it difficult to root out such feelings now. And their efforts to weed out other types of COVID-19 misinformation – often with fact checks, informational labels, and other restraints – have been woefully slow.
The Associated Press recently identified over a dozen Facebook pages and Instagram accounts, with millions of followers, who have misrepresented the COVID-19 vaccine or discouraged people from taking it. Some of these pages have been around for years.
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