For a while, Facebook has been looking for a solution to its fake news crisis. Now, it will put a new strategy to the test that will put fact checking partially in the hands of a team of community members that will help distinguish fact from fiction in these news posts. 

This new strategy was created with the purpose of aiding the current fact-checking team by determining which posts are worthy of a more in depth investigation. This will be possible through a series of steps that will help filter out these news reports. 

Fake news a no-go

According to Facebook’s press page, the first step in filtering fake news will be algorithm led. This algorithm will find posts that contain the potential to propagate false information. The algorithms will determine the level of potential by considering a series of key factors, such as comments that express shock or disbelief, the page’s track record of spreading fake news, and more. If the post raises enough concern, then the new team of appointed community members will further evaluate the news by conducting their own research on the topic and creating a detailed report of their findings. The final decision regarding the post will be made on the final step, by the fact checking team who will take a closer look at the posts based on the reports’ suggestions. 

It’s important to note that while the reports made are a collaborative effort, it is not teamwork. Each post will be assigned to several members of the community group, where they will have to make individual research and reports in order to have different points of views reflective of the diverse community on Facebook. In doing so, Facebook will be able to avoid any biases that may affect the fact-checking process while increasing the accuracy of its fact-checking efforts. Because of this, the community member group will not be employed directly by Facebook. This method was a suggestion made by YouGov, a public  opinion and data group that works with Facebook, who deemed this a necessary step to take in order to ensure the success of this new strategy. 

This initiative has been in the works since last year and is finally being put to the test. For now, this strategy will only be implemented in the United States. A review of its results and participating member feedback will determine whether this strategy will be implemented in other countries or whether it will be taken in a different direction. The new strategy comes at a crucial time for the United States, since elections are coming up, and Facebook has faced severe scrutiny in the past for the spreading of Fake news during previous presidential elections that helped favor the opinion and success of certain political parties. Similarly Facebook has been criticized for its opposition towards fact-checking political ads. 

Only time will tell whether this strategy will work, but what matters is that Facebook is starting to take the necessary measures to diminish the occurrence of fake news on its multiple platforms. 

Source: 
www.socialmediatoday.com
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