Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Instagram Placed A Disclaimer For People Searching The #Coronavirus Hashtag To Reduce Misinformation

Instagram Placed A Disclaimer For People Searching The #Coronavirus Hashtag To Reduce Misinformation

Facebook has also said it would conduct "proactive sweeps" in order to remove or block hashtags spreading misinformation on Instagram.
When users click into the #coronavirus hashtag on Instagram, they will now see a notice encouraging them to visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website for credible information about the virus.

Instagram officially implemented the update on Sunday after parent company Facebook first announced plans to combat misinformation about the virus two weeks ago.

"When people ... tap a related hashtag on Instagram, we will surface an educational pop-up with credible information," Facebook said.

A company spokesperson told BuzzFeed News on Tuesday that the CDC warning was part of an effort to "help reduce the spread of information that could put people in harm's way."

Facebook has also said it would conduct "proactive sweeps" in order to remove or block hashtags spreading misinformation on Instagram. It did not say what hashtags have been removed, if any.

The CDC warning follows initiatives taken by other giant social media platforms, like Pinterest, who also placed a disclaimer above pins and hashtags related to the coronavirus.

BuzzFeed News first encountered Instagram's change when clicking across this Instagram post with the #coronavirus hashtag from a German fitness influencer vacationing in Thailand.

@Fitnessoskar shared a photo of him and his partner kissing in matching face masks, writing, in German, that while they're not afraid of the virus, they're still wearing masks for self-protection. He said he's been getting a lot of questions about whether or not he's fearful about the virus while he's in Phuket, Thailand. He ends his long caption by asking his fans to share their thoughts and opinions on the virus in the comments.

The post is hashtagged with a few things, including #kiss and #coronavirus.

Along with explicit misinformation and directly dangerous content that's being shared about the virus on social media, the hashtag also attracts memes and insensitive jokes.

As happens with any global crises nowadays, a handful of opportune users are also hashtagging #coronavirus for personal content and other self-interest values, like clout.

However, the priority for Facebook and Instagram seems to be posts with overt misinformation.

In addition to the disclaimer, the company said it has offered free advertising credits to health organizations who want to run educational ads about the coronavirus on its platforms, and that it's "closely coordinating" with these organizations to provide "accurate information about the situation."

Large social media companies have come under scrutiny over the years for enabling, or being slow to take action against, misinformed health-related content.

Many false or false posts have spread on Facebook in relation to the coronavirus.

As YouTube and Facebook are trying to crack down on fake and unverified content, among 500 of the most-watched videos featuring the keyword “coronavirus" that BuzzFeed News watched, dozens of videos included unconfirmed or made-up facts. The questionable YouTube videos then are shared to Facebook, where they rapidly go viral.
AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Called Viktor Orbán: "Why Are You Using the Veto"
Horror in the Skies: Plane Engine Exploded, Passengers Sent Farewell Messages
AI in Policing: Draft One Helps Speed Up Reports but Raises Legal and Ethical Concerns
Shame in Norway: Crown Princess’s Son Accused of Four Rapes
Apple Begins Simultaneous iPhone 17 Production in India and China
A Robot to Give Birth: The Chinese Announcement That Shakes the World
Finnish MP Dies by Suicide in Parliament Building
Outrage in the Tennis World After Jannik Sinner’s Withdrawal Storm
Class Action Lawsuit Against Volkswagen: Steering Wheel Switches Cause Accidents
UK Government Tries to Sue 4chan for Breaching Online Safety Act
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Cambridge Dictionary Adds 'Skibidi,' 'Delulu,' and 'Tradwife' Amid Surge of Online Slang
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
The CEO Who Replaced 80% of Employees for the AI Revolution: "I Would Do It Again"
"Every Centimeter of Your Body Is a Masterpiece": The Shocking Meta Document Revealed
Character.ai Bets on Future of AI Companionship
China Ramps Up Tax Crackdown on Overseas Investments
Japanese Office Furniture Maker Expands into Bomb Shelter Market
Intel Shares Surge on Possible U.S. Government Investment
Hurricane Erin Threatens U.S. East Coast with Dangerous Surf
EU Blocks Trade Statement Over Digital Rule Dispute
EU Sends Record Aid as Spain Battles Wildfires
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
China Requires Data Centres to Source Majority of AI Chips Locally, For Technological Sovereignty
Escalating Clashes in Serbia as Anti-Government Protests Spread Nationwide
Category 5 Hurricane in the Caribbean: 'Catastrophic Storm' with Winds of 255 km/h
Trump Backs Putin’s Land-for-Peace Proposal Amid Kyiv’s Rejection
Digital Humans Move Beyond Sci-Fi: From Virtual DJs to AI Customer Agents
YouTube will start using AI to guess your age. If it’s wrong, you’ll have to prove it
Jellyfish Swarm Triggers Shutdown at Gravelines Nuclear Power Station in Northern France
OpenAI’s ‘PhD-Level’ ChatGPT 5 Stumbles, Struggles to Even Label a Map
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
High-Stakes Trump-Putin Summit on Ukraine Underway in Alaska
The World Economic Forum has cleared Klaus Schwab of “material wrongdoing” after a law firm conducted a review into potential misconduct of the institution’s founder
A Computer That Listens, Sees, and Acts: What to Expect from Windows 12
Bitcoin hits $123,000
Southwest Airlines Apologizes After 'Accidentally Forgetting' Two Blind Passengers at New Orleans Airport and Faces Criticism Over Poor Service for Passengers with Disabilities
United States Sells Luxury Yacht Amadea, Valued at Approximately $325 Million, in First Sale of a Seized Russian Yacht Since the Invasion of Ukraine
Russian Forces Advance on Donetsk Front, Cutting Key Supply Routes Near Pokrovsk
It’s Not the Algorithm: New Study Claims Social Networks Are Fundamentally Broken
Sixty-Year-Old Claims: “My Biological Age Is Twenty-One.” Want the Same? Remember the Name Spermidine
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
The Billion-Dollar Inheritance and the Death on the Railway Tracks: The Scandal Shaking Europe
World’s Cleanest Countries 2025 Ranked by Air, Water, Waste, and Hygiene Standards
Denmark Revives EU ‘Chat Control’ Proposal for Encrypted Message Scanning
Perplexity makes unsolicited $34.5 billion all-cash offer for Google’s Chrome browser
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
×