In response to the digital mayhem, Twitter is implementing new rules aimed at lessening the amount of coronavirus-related misinformation shared on the platform.
The platform’s safety rules have been expanded to “include content that could place people at a higher risk of transmitting COVID-19” as of late Wednesday. Twitter plans to remove any tweets that violate its new rules.
In several tweets, the platform expanded upon what kind of messages this might entail. Anyone sharing content with “denial of expert guidance, encouragement to use fake or ineffective treatments, preventions, and diagnostic techniques or misleading content purporting to be from experts or authorities,” may see their tweets flagged.
If an offending tweet is discovered, the poster will be required to remove it. In an interview with Tech Crunch, Twitter went into more detail on the policy.
For one thing, the platform intends to take account history into consideration when making these decisions. “When we determine that a Tweet violated the Twitter Rules, we require the violator to remove it before they can Tweet again,” the company said. Users will be notified via email, at which point they can choose to make an appeal or delete the tweet. This will allow them to regain access to their accounts. Until the tweet is removed or Twitter deems it appropriate, however, it will not be viewable.
The very broad definition of offending tweets is going to present a real hurdle for Twitter. The number of tweets that potentially violate the new rules are likely to number in the thousands. That means a lot of work for Twitter.
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H/T Tech Crunch
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