CALIFORNIA: As the new coronavirus spreads globally, the online battle to keep misinformation about the disease is also stepping up. “(We must) combat the spread of rumors and misinformation,” WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told AFP recently. Ghebreyesus said that social media platforms including Twitter, Facebook, Tencent and TikTok have also taken steps to limit the spread of misinformation about coronavirus. YouTube last year began providing links to reliable information along with videos on “subjects prone to misinformation,” and added coronavirus to that list. Bergstrom and West questioned whether social media giants optimized for virality could stem the tide of disinformation and deceit.

Source: Pakistan Today February 26, 2020 04:30 UTC