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Facebook Cracking Down on Fake News

Dec 15, 2016  •  Post A Comment

Facebook is implementing measures aimed at deterring the spread of fake news on the massive social network. The AP reports that the new policy focuses on the “worst of the worst” offenders.

The social network is partnering with outside fact checkers to differentiate between actual news and made-up stories.

“To start, Facebook is making it easier for users to report fake news when they see it, which they can now do in two steps, not three,” the AP reports. “If enough people report a story as fake, Facebook will pass it to third-party fact-checking organizations that are part of the nonprofit Poynter Institute’s International Fact-Checking Network.”

Facebook is currently working with ABC News, The Associated Press, FactCheck.org, Politifact and Snopes as fact checkers, and is expected to expand that lineup.

“Stories that flunk the fact check won’t be removed from Facebook,” the AP notes. “But they’ll be publicly flagged as ‘disputed,’ which will force them to appear lower down in people’s news feed. Users can click on a link to learn why that is. And if people decide they want to share the story with friends anyway, they can — but they’ll get another warning.”

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