Instagram's attack on vaccine misinformation



[ad_1]

Instagram is a lot for many people. For some, unfortunately, it is a place of marinade in myths relating to the illusion that vaccinations are dangerous. But the social network announced today that it was going tamp down on spreading inaccurate information about vaccines Hiding the hashtags with a high percentage of this content.

The company does not say what percentage of false information is considered "high". At a press conference on Thursday morning, Global Public Policy Officer Karina Newton explained that being too specific would help people to play the system. But if a hashtag is associated with too many messages contradicting the facts as they have been determined by authorities such as the World Health Organization, it will be banned. The social network will also respond to research related to vaccination through a pop-up window leading the user to reliable information on the subject.

The new Instagram policy apparently falls short of Pinterest's decision to block searches and anti-vaccination content. The anti-vaccination sentiment will not be commented on Instagram if it is expressed as an opinion rather than in the form of inaccurate statements about the facts. "If someone says," I think the vaccines are terrible for me, "they have permission of this opinion," Newton said.

Instagram's approach to vaccine misinformation follows its approach to content related to suicide and self-injury, which the social network also combats with hashtag bans and contextual messages. With this content, Instagram uses "machine learning" to identify hashtags that must be placed in a level that receives the resources of suicide and self-harm. [message], or if it should be totally blocked, "said Newton. "This is an example of automation". For the moment, the effort to minimize vaccine myths will involve more manual management by moderators.

[ad_2]

Source link