Twitter has taken to social media to set the record straight regarding the platform’s new policies on misinformation. In a series of Tweets, Twitter says that it’s is not focused on flagging or labelling every piece of misinformation as it’s rather tackling the content with “the highest potential for harm”.
This is, according to the company, because people have insisted that the platform “shouldn’t determine the truthfulness of tweets,” but rather “provide context to help people make up their own minds in cases where the substance of a tweet is disputed.”
We are NOT attempting to address all misinformation. Instead, we prioritize based on the highest potential for harm, focusing on manipulated media, civic integrity, and COVID-19. Likelihood, severity and type of potential harm — along with reach and scale — factor into this.
— Twitter Safety (@TwitterSafety) June 3, 2020
“Hence, our focus is on providing context, not fact-checking,” writes Twitter.
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The company then went on to explain that it will link factual statements, counterpoint opinions and perspectives, and ongoing public conversations to tweets that have been labelled as potentially misleading.
When we label Tweets we link to Twitter conversation that shows three things for context:
1⃣Factual statements (e.g. “ballots are only being sent to registered voters”)
2⃣Counterpoint opinions & perspectives
3⃣Ongoing public conversation around the issuehttps://t.co/gSPzaEZ1Fk— Twitter Safety (@TwitterSafety) June 3, 2020
This comes after US President Donald Trump threatened to regulate or even “close down” social media platforms – after a number of his tweets were branded as containing misleading information.
….happen again. Just like we can’t let large scale Mail-In Ballots take root in our Country. It would be a free for all on cheating, forgery and the theft of Ballots. Whoever cheated the most would win. Likewise, Social Media. Clean up your act, NOW!!!!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 27, 2020
But it would seem that the options at Trump’s disposal are limited. ITNA’s Luiz Monzon writes that “the president could push for new legislation, or he could pressure US regulators to sue the companies in question. However, none of his options are guaranteed to accomplish what the president is threatening to do.”
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