When we talk about the term “fake news,” most people likely picture a certain person who made the term infamous.
And when we talk about misinformation and disinformation, many will remember the “Russian troll farms” that popped up during the 2016 U.S. presidential election and were unmasked and shut down during former president Barack Obama’s final days in office.
But a few recent actions from TikTok, the most popular online social media platform, show that the problem of spreading misinformation and disinformation goes far beyond the borders of the U.S.
TikTok announced last week it was launching in-app “election centres” to help combat misinformation and inform users of facts when they view videos about elections in European Union nations. This includes 27 unique apps that all use the country’s native language.
In a statement on their site, the social media company said this effort is to “ensure people can easily separate fact from fiction.”
Part of me can’t help but wonder if this wasn’t a problem of the company’s own creation after they allowed misinformation about the COVID-19 global pandemic to spread rapidly and use an algorithm that enhances “controversial” videos about different international brands. But I can certainly hope that th ..
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