Facebook Is Finally Targeting Anti-Vax Pages and Groups
The changes come months after the start of the vaccine rollout in the U.S.
Facebook announced in a blog post on Monday that it intends to start removing vaccine misinformation from groups and pages, expanding its focus on “debunked claims” about the Covid-19 vaccine.
“We’re running the largest worldwide campaign to promote authoritative information about COVID-19 vaccines,” wrote Kang-Xing Jin, Facebook’s head of health, adding that “following consultations with leading health organizations, including the WHO, we’re expanding the list of false claims we will remove to include additional debunked claims about COVID-19 and vaccines.”
“Today’s change was a response to a ruling from Facebook’s Oversight Board,” the New York Times reported. In an issuance of its recent rulings last month, the Facebook Oversight Board, an internally founded and funded third-party review body, called the company’s application of its policies to vaccine content “inappropriately vague” and encouraged Facebook to create a new community standard on health misinformation.
Anti-vaccine groups and content continue to propagate on Facebook and Instagram despite the company’s previous commitments to remove posts spreading misinformation debunked by health…
