Comment on Facebook disinformation concerns
Feb. 28, 2019NEWS FROM OPEN KNOWLEDGE INTERNATIONAL
EMBARGO: IMMEDIATE
FACEBOOK MUST ‘UP ITS GAME’ ON TRANSPARENCY
Facebook has repeatedly withheld key data on its efforts to clamp down on disinformation ahead of this year’s European elections, the EU’s executive has said.
Commenting, Catherine Stihler, chief executive of Open Knowledge International, said: “Facebook must listen to these concerns and act on the growing demands for greater transparency. It’s time for the social media giant to up its game. “Facebook has been at the centre of a series of rows about disinformation, particularly in connection with the Brexit referendum, and that cannot be allowed to happen once again in the run-up to this year’s elections. “Urgent progress must be made on working with third-part fact-checkers in every EU member state. “Social media can be a force for good, but only if platforms behave responsibly and tackle the spread of disinformation and fake news.”
ENDS
NOTES TO EDITORS
The report in the Guardian can be read here: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/feb/28/facebook-withholding-data-anti-disinformation-efforts-eu
https://twitter.com/EU_Commission/status/1101082989805686784
Contact: Alan Roden at alan.roden@okfn.org or +44 07753 904 531
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