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Anti-Vax Groups Still Thrive on Facebook, Despite Content Ban

Sarah Emerson
OneZero
Published in
4 min readMar 9, 2021

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A protester holds an anti-vaccination sign. Photo: David McNew/Getty Images

A month after Facebook said it would expand efforts to scrub its platforms of vaccine misinformation, false narratives about the Covid-19 vaccine are still flourishing in public and private Facebook communities.

OneZero found dozens of anti-vax groups, public and private, some of which have tens of thousands of users. The sheer abundance of anti-vax material in Facebook groups suggests that the company’s current tools and strategies aren’t enough to tackle even surface-level vaccine misinformation.

Facebook has not released a progress update since its blog post last month, and it did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In a group called “Covid-19 vaccine adverse reaction testimonials,” one member bizarrely accused the pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca of “facilitating Satanic ritual.”

Facebook’s renewed pledge to eradicate vaccine hoaxes and misinformation was informed by a January ruling from the company’s

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OneZero
OneZero

Published in OneZero

OneZero is a former publication from Medium about the impact of technology on people and the future. Currently inactive and not taking submissions.

Sarah Emerson
Sarah Emerson

Written by Sarah Emerson

Staff writer at OneZero covering social platforms, internet communities, and the spread of misinformation online. Previously: VICE

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