"The social media platforms are increasingly just arms of the federal government and the Biden White House," Hawley tweeted. Josh Hawley (R–Mo.) even suggested that the site's submission to the feds renders it an agent of the state. Instead of defending the rights of private companies to set their own moderation policies independent of whatever the government would like them to do, Republicans are taking this opportunity to further erode Facebook's autonomy. Facebook's CEO must feel tremendous pressure to give federal health bureacrats exactly what they're asking for, or else. Prominent legislators from both political parties-as well as the current and former presidents-want to aggressively regulate his company if not break it apart entirely. The White House's targeting of Facebook should make critics a little sympathetic to Mark Zuckerberg's position. (This has been the case outside the realm of pandemic-related content as well.) New initiatives undertaken by the federal government that would encourage Facebook to be even more heavy-handed with potential misinformation should be met with skepticism: The track record is just not very encouraging. That policy was not revised until June.Įfforts by the government and tech platforms to suppress misinformation have undeniably resulted sometimes in the suppression of information that is either factual, or could plausibly turn out to be factual. For months, government health officials treated the lab leak theory of COVID-19's origins as a wild conspiracy theory, and Facebook followed suit: It vigorously censored content that promoted the lab leak theory. Of course, the government itself has spread plenty of "medical misinformation," from the early bad guidance on masks to White House coronavirus czar Anthony Fauci's deliberate misstatements about the herd immunity threshold.
Psaki was alluding to anti-vaccine content, though the report itself impugns "medical misinformation" more broadly. "Posts that would be within their policy for removal often remain up for days, and that's too long. "Facebook needs to move more quickly to remove harmful, violative posts," she said.
But you're forgiven if you think Psaki's summary of the report sounded like a command. These dictates are essentially strongly-worded suggestions. The federal government is not explicitly ordering tech platforms to take down content. "That's why we included recommendations for individuals, educators, researchers, health professionals, tech companies, and more." "We all have the power and responsibility to confront health misinformation," tweeted Surgeon General Vivek Murthy. She was discussing a Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) report on "confronting health misinformation." It instructs social media platforms to redesign their algorithms so that false information about COVID-19 is deprioritized, to shield journalists and medical professionals from harassment, and even to address misinformation during livestreams, a task that the report admits is "difficult" given the streams' "temporary nature and use of audio and video." "All of them remain active on Facebook, despite some even being banned on other platforms, including ones that Facebook owns." "There's about 12 people who are producing 65 percent of vaccine misinformation on social media platforms," said Psaki. 678), resume, three references (name, relationship, and telephone number), a two-page policy brief directed at the general public, and a one-page statement of interest outlining why you are interested in this particular position and how your background, knowledge, skills, and abilities make you the ideal candidate for the job.Īpplication packets submitted without all referenced components will not be considered.The federal government is stepping up its effort to purge the internet of COVID-19 "misinformation." On Thursday, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki singled out a dozen specific anti-vaccine Facebook accounts and called on the platform to ban them. Submit a standard state application (Std. Only the most qualified applicants will be interviewed. Individuals who have list eligibility, current State employees at the Research Program Specialist I/II (Economics) level, or those within transfer range and meet the minimum qualifications pursuant to SPB Rule 250.
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