As Social Media Misinformation Grows In The US, Other Nations Fight Back
Meta's decision to stop fact-checking doesn't apply to the EU, which has sweeping rules that require social media firms to do more, not less, to prevent harm. One Nobel Peace Prize winner warned that Meta's move could create “a world that’s right for a dictator.”
The Washington Post:
Meta’s Fact-Checking Overhaul Widens Global Rift On Disinformation
While Meta said the plan would be rolled out “first” in the United States, spokesman Andy Stone said the company has no immediate plans to extend the policies to other regions, such as Europe, where social platforms have come under increased legal pressure to increase rather than diminish content moderation. The company declined to comment on whether or when it would apply changes globally. (Lima-Strong, 1/8)
The Washington Post:
Meta Embraces Fact-Checking ‘Community Notes.’ X Users Say It Has Problems.
Before the November election, Walt Wang said he spent 10 to 20 hours a week debunking falsehoods on X, the social media platform owned by Elon Musk. As election-related lies and propaganda spread throughout the site, he carefully crafted responses, backed by reputable sources, to counter the false claims before they reached millions of users. But often, he said, his efforts felt “similar to a game of whack-a-mole.” He spent hours debunking one conspiracy theory, only to watch another crop up moments later. (Thadani and Oremus, 1/8)
The Guardian:
Meta Is Ushering In A ‘World Without Facts’, Says Nobel Peace Prize Winner
The Nobel peace prize winner Maria Ressa has said Meta’s decision to end factchecking on its platforms and remove restrictions on certain topics means “extremely dangerous times” lie ahead for journalism, democracy and social media users. The American-Filipino journalist said Mark Zuckerberg’s move to relax content moderation on the Facebook and Instagram platforms would lead to a “world without facts” and that was “a world that’s right for a dictator”. (Milmo, 1/8)
AP:
No More Fact-Checking For Meta. How Will This Change Media — And The Pursuit Of Truth?
Giving a misstatement the label of “pants on fire,” as some fact-checkers have, may be a catchy way of attracting attention but also fostered resentment. But Angie Drobnic Holan, director of the International Fact-Checking Network, resists the view that fact-checkers have been biased in their work: “That attack line comes from those who feel they should be able to exaggerate and lie without rebuttal or contradiction.” (Bauder, 1/9)
