Twitter to label disputed COVID-19 tweets
FILE - This April 26, 2017, file photo shows the Twitter app icon on a mobile phone in Philadelphia. Facebook, Google, Twitter and other platforms are taking unprecedented steps to protect public health as potentially dangerous coronavirus misinformation spreads around the world. The companies are removing potentially dangerous misinformation promoted by politicians and others, while directing users to credible information from sources like the World Health Organization. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)
CHICAGO (AP) — Twitter announced Monday it will warn users with a label when a tweet contains disputed or misleading information about the coronavirus.
The company will take a case-by-case approach to how it decides which tweets are labeled, company leaders said Monday.
Some tweets will run with a label underneath that directs users to links with additional information about COVID-19.
Other tweets will be covered entirely by alerts that tell users the information is in “conflict with guidance from public health experts.”
The new rule is just the latest in a string of stricter policies that tech companies are rolling out to confront virus misinformation on their sites.
