The U.S. government has criticized social media platforms like Facebook and the like for the spread of the COVID-19 vaccine scam.
According to President Joe Biden, Facebook and other social media allowed the spread of misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccine, which led to an increase in the number of deaths from the virus.
"They're killing people ... the pandemic we're going through right now is happening to people who haven't been vaccinated, and they need people," Biden said, as quoted by The Verge, Sunday (7/18/2021).
Biden’s speech comes after the previous U.S. government ran a campaign to pressure Facebook and other social media to take more aggressive steps to combat the spread of fraud related to the COVID-19 vaccine.
A few days ago Surgeon General Vivek Murthy asked social media platforms to invest more in fighting the Corona virus scam. According to him, social media companies must change their algorithms so that the fake messages that are spread are not amplified, or become bigger.
They were also asked to make the sharing function more stringent so that users think twice before spreading posts containing fake news. Finally, Murthy also recommended that social media platforms provide stern penalties for accounts that repeatedly break the rules.
Facebook has not yet issued a response to the request. Meanwhile, Twitter claimed to have gone directly to the Surgeon’s office to discuss the misinformation.
"We agree with Surgeons - eradicating misinformation about health requires a multifaceted approach. We continue to work with and consult with global public health authorities, public health experts and relevant officials to help the public obtain accurate information about COVID- 19 , "said a Twitter spokesperson.
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