Summary
A recent survey by Social Media Matters and Institute for Governance, Policies, and Politics has revealed that more than 53% of the population has received fake news over various social media platforms, owing to the air of general elections. Facebook and WhatsApp have been excessively used to misinform the users. To counter fake news and misinformation, Facebook, Google, WhatsApp, and Twitter have recently announced a slew of new tools and policies for bringing more transparency. This is also
Highlights:
- Social Media Matters and Institute for Governance, Policies, and Politics conducted a recent survey which revealed that more than 53% of the population has recieved fake news over social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp ahead of general elections.
- Social media platforms have been resorting to a variety of measures to combat the spread of misinformation. For instance, WhatsApp recently launched an India-focused fact-checking feature to fight fake news. This feature will stay active starting with the run-up to the Lok Sabha election. The initiative came after Facebook took down over 700 pages linked to individuals that were said to be associated with BJP and Congress for spamming users.
- A user can now report about rumours or perceived misinformation to the WhatsApp number (+91-9643-000-888) and check its authenticity.
- “Forwarded” label is another feature by WhatsApp which can help users to identify if that message was forwarded to them or created by the people they know.