With the propagation and dissemination of fake news becoming an increasingly worrisome issue on the internet, companies such as Facebook, Google, Twitter, Tumblr and others are trying their best to fighting misinformation through a combination of human review and automated technology.
All these tech giants have been terminating accounts en masse and teaming up with reputable fact-checking sources to combat the menace, although, they have all expressed some reservations about playing full-time fact-checkers.
Now, however, Facebook has announced that it is increasing the scope and scale of its fact-checking program not only geographically, but also in terms of technology. As part of the plan, the company says it has expanded its fight against fake news to 14 countries around the world. The company is also making use of machine learning to identify and demote or remove misinformation, and the accounts that spread such content.
Facebook further says that it is planning to take its fight against propaganda, fake news and misinformation to even more countries by the end of this year. Towards that end, the company says it is working with certified, independent fact-checkers who rate the accuracy of stories on Facebook so that the social network can reduce the distribution of stories that are rated as false by an average of 80 percent.
The company is also expanding its fact-checking to photos and videos so as to stop the spread and dissemination of not just fake, manipulated media, but also images that are being used out of context. The company has also provided the names and e-mail IDs of several reputable press agencies and third-party fact-checkers that users can contact in case they come across fake news that has been marked as ‘True’ on Facebook.
