Facebook has explained some of the ways it is trying to tackle fake news
Facebook has set out some of the ways it is trying to address fake news and hoax stories.
Both Facebook and Google have faced strong criticism in recent weeks over a proliferation of false news stories during the US presidential race.
The digital giants both promised to crack down on advertising against fake news last month.
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Facebook founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg also took to his favourite website, Facebook, to explain: “we take misinformation seriously”.
And now Facebook has explained how it is attempting to challenge fake stories.
The social media firm wants to make it easier for users to report a hoax, by enabling people to report posts.
Facebook has also started using third-party fact-checking organisations to help flag fakery. It will still be possible to access and share these articles, but with warnings.
The company is also trying to reduce financial incentives for hoaxers.
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“On the buying side we’ve eliminated the ability to spoof domains, which will reduce the prevalence of sites that pretend to be real publications,” said Adam Mosseri, vice president of Facebook’s News Feed. “On the publisher side, we are analysing publisher sites to detect where policy enforcement actions might be necessary.”
He added:
It’s important to us that the stories you see on Facebook are authentic and meaningful. We’re excited about this progress, but we know there’s more to be done. We’re going to keep working on this problem for as long as it takes to get it right.