COVID-19 Misinformation: Facebook, WHO launch new campaign across Africa

By Ajuma Edwina Ameh

To connect people to accurate information and reduce misinformation on its platforms, Facebook is launching a new campaign in partnership with the World Health Organization (WHO) tagged, “Together Against Covid-19 Misinformation’’.

The campaign will roll out to people in English and French across South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, Nigeria, Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire and DRC, and will pop on Facebook through a series of graphics with tips on how to spot false news.

Last month, Facebook announced the biggest worldwide campaign https://bit.ly/3cGJamf to promote authoritative information about Covid-19 vaccines, working to remove false vaccine claims, reduce distribution of inaccurate health information, and inform people about effective vaccine delivery.

According to a statement issued by the social media platform on Monday, the tips on how to spot false news will include checking the source, checking how it makes you feel as false news can manipulate feelings for click and checking the context.

“As part of the campaign, Facebook will also be launching a dedicated website; https://bit.ly/3fwscsN, in English and French, which will include information on how we are tackling misinformation on our platforms.

“It will give people more transparency around our Remove, Reduce and Inform strategy, outline our community standards, and share the steps we are taking to combat false news around global events such as Covid-19, elections and climate change,” the statement said.

Commenting, the Public Policy Manager, Aïda Ndiaye, said: “Ensuring users are getting authoritative information about Covid-19 vaccines is just some of the vital work we are doing here at Facebook.

“During the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond, we will continue working with industry experts and people on our platforms to ensure we are aggressively tackling misinformation and giving people additional resources to scrutinize content they see online, helping them decide what to read, trust and share.”