Wednesday, May 26, 2021

Facebook reverses policy, allows posts claiming Covid was made in a lab

 Social media giant Facebook has lifted its ban on content claiming about the origins of Covid-19, and theories about its possible lab creation, reports said


Social media giant Facebook has lifted its ban on content claiming about the origins of COVID-19, and theories about its possible lab creation, reports said.

"In light of ongoing investigations into the origin of COVID-19 and in consultation with public health experts, we will no longer remove the claim that COVID-19 is man-made from our apps," The Hill stated quoting a Facebook spokesperson.

The representatives of Facebook also said: "We're continuing to work with health experts to keep pace with the evolving nature of the pandemic and regularly update our policies as new facts and trends emerge."

This shift in policy comes after months of targeting content that the social media site deemed misinformation regarding the pandemic.

In December, Facebook announced it would be nixing posts that contained false information about the coronavirus vaccines, it reported further.

Posts containing false claims about "safety, efficacy, ingredients or side effects" were added to the list of already banned content, which included more general coronavirus misinformation.

Recently, the theory that coronavirus escaped from a laboratory gained some traction in Washington, resulting in President Joe Biden announcing a ramped-up effort to confirm how the virus originated.

"As part of that report, I have asked for areas of further inquiry that may be required, including specific questions for China," Biden said in a statement.

"I have also asked that this effort include work by our National Labs and other agencies of our government to augment the Intelligence Community's efforts. And I have asked the Intelligence Community to keep Congress fully apprised of its work."

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