Despite the Covid-19 numbers seem to go unnoticed, the problem of social platforms and disinformation persists. In fact, these days Meta is evaluating whether loosen some of the restrictions which he posed on disinformation related to Covid-19. Including whether or not to continue removing posts containing false claims about vaccines, face masks, social distancing and related topics. Therefore, the company asked the Observatory how to proceed on the matter.
Misinformation: Meta is considering easing restrictions on platforms
“In many countries, where vaccination rates are relatively high, life is increasingly returning to normal. But this is not the case everywhere, and the course of the pandemic will continue to vary significantly around the world, especially in countries with low vaccination rates and less developed health systems. It is important that any policy implemented by Meta is appropriate for the full range of circumstances in which countries find themselves, ”he writes Nick Clegg, president of the company’s global affairs. He added that “resolving the inherent tensions between freedom of expression and security is not easy, especially in the face of unprecedented and fast-moving challenges, as we were during the pandemic. This is why in this case we ask for the opinion of the Supervisory Body. His guidance will also help us respond to future public health emergencies ”.
On the other hand, despite all the criticisms received from Facebook and Instagram for disinformation, in the end Meta’s policies proved effective. The company, in fact, estimates that it has removed over 25 million posts that did not respect its guidelines. Despite this, he now wants to get a second opinion from the Observatory to understand how to behave in the future. According to what Clegg reported, in fact, Meta fears that there may be new pandemics in the coming years, and therefore wants to find a strategy to adopt to avoid running into problems of any kind. So what will really happen to the platforms now? A part of the Meta team wants to loosen the restrictions on content related to Covid-19, it is evident. But you are waiting for the Observatory to give its approval.
On the other hand, loosening restrictions means attracting criticism from users and politicians. Clearly, if the Council were to accept Meta it will find convenient solutions for manage the spread of disinformation. Like adding fact checking, or reducing the distribution of fake posts in the Feed. But the mere fact that users have the ability to share anti-vaccination content would create complaints. A somewhat inconvenient forecast for Meta, which in any case will try to move with caution for any change. What do you think?