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from the threw-the-facebook-out-with-the-vax-water dept.
Facebook cracks down on vaccine misinformation
In a blog post, the Menlo Park, Calif. company said it will reject any ads containing misinformation about vaccines, remove any targeted advertising options like 'vaccine controversies,' and will no longer show or recommend content containing this type of misinformation on Instagram Explore or hashtag pages."
Submitted via IRC for FatPhil
Combatting Vaccine Misinformation
We are working to tackle vaccine misinformation on Facebook by reducing its distribution and providing people with authoritative information on the topic.
[...] Leading global health organizations, such as the World Health Organization and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, have publicly identified verifiable vaccine hoaxes. If these vaccine hoaxes appear on Facebook, we will take action against them.
For example, if a group or Page admin posts this vaccine misinformation, we will exclude the entire group or Page from recommendations, reduce these groups and Pages’ distribution in News Feed and Search, and reject ads with this misinformation.
We also believe in providing people with additional context so they can decide whether to read, share, or engage in conversations about information they see on Facebook. We are exploring ways to give people more accurate information from expert organizations about vaccines at the top of results for related searches, on Pages discussing the topic, and on invitations to join groups about the topic. We will have an update on this soon.
We are fully committed to the safety of our community and will continue to expand on this work.
(Score: 2) by fyngyrz on Thursday March 14 2019, @03:58PM (2 children)
It doesn't seem murky to me at all. It isn't communication, pro or con, accurate or not, that should be banned. Ever.
The things that should be banned are actions that violate the informed consent of others.
So talking about homeopathy — no problem.
Selling, or treating someone with, some homeopathic fake remedy — violation of their liberties, and should be subject to penalties.
Talking about anti-vax ideas — no problem.
Executing those ideas and putting others in danger without their informed consent — violation of their liberties, and should be subject to penalties.
...and so forth.
Implicit in my views on this is the idea that one of the legitimate roles of government is to educate the populace so that known misinformation can be identified and appropriately triaged by the populace, and they can evaluate risks of actual actions as well as possible so that informed consent is something that can be better achieved.
The bottom line is that information is not action, and between them is where the line should lay.
--
Knowledge is strength. Unless the opposition has more money.
(Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday March 14 2019, @07:01PM (1 child)
i'm not responsible for mother nature nor your shitty immune system. fuck off and die.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday March 14 2019, @08:39PM