Social media companies declare war on misinformation

Ahead of Election Day and amidst an ongoing pandemic, Twitter and other social media companies are taking big steps to slow the spread of misinformation on their platforms.  

Twitter announced major changes that will be implemented to help curb the spread of misinformation on their site. This was announced in a statement released on the company’s blog. 

The idea is simple, make someone think twice about retweeting a post that is flagged for misinformation. 

Twitter is doing this by creating a warning sign that pops up when you go to retweet a post that has been flagged for potential misinformation. The warning pop-up then links the user to various credible sources on the topic. The warning does not prohibit users from sharing the tweet completely, but Twitter believes it will force people to think twice before amplifying misinformation.

The company does admit that the updates will cause “friction” for users but they reassure that the changes are only temporary and will most-likely go back to normal after the election.  

Twitter said the goal is to encourage users to add their own “thoughts, reactions, and perspectives to the conversation.”  

The changes will take place on Oct. 20. 

Twitter isn’t the only social media company making changes before the election. This week, Facebook said it would ban political ads after the polls close on Election Day and put a banner at the top of the feed letting you know that no winner has been decided until news outlets declare one.  

The bottom line is that social media companies know that they will be on the front lines during the election and with that comes a large amount of responsibility. With Election Day just 23 days away, they are preparing for any possible scenario.