Facebook Bans Ads That Provide Misinformation on Vaccines

Facebook will now ban ads that spread misinformation on vaccines. The social media company has announced that under the new global policy, ads that discourage people from getting vaccinated, ads that portray vaccines to be unsafe or ineffective, and ads that claim diseases prevented by vaccines are actually harmless, will no longer be allowed.

This new policy will also apply to Instagram and it will be rolled out in the next few days.

According to Facebook officials Kang-Xing Jin and Rob Leathern, their goal is to promote the safety and efficacy of the vaccines so that it can reach a huge number of people. By banning these type of ads that promote misinformation, it can do a lot of help to the public health.

The company spokesperson Devon Kearns announced that the new policy does not totally ban ads opposing vaccination. They would still allow ads that advocate for or against legislation or government policies on vaccines, including a Covid-19 vaccine, provided that the ads do not explicitly discourage vaccination or make false claims.

The changes came following the pressure they received from lawmakers and public health groups to control harmful content and stop misinformation and anti-vaccine content. As the social media platform has more than 3 billion monthly active users, this move can help a lot of public health groups.

Facebook's CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, in the past, favored "free speech," and this move is actually contradicting to their reluctance to police what people are allowed to say. But because of the recent pandemic, it highlighted the importance of preventive health behaviors. 

According to health officials, this is the year where it is highly important to urge people to get flu vaccines as the medical community continues with the battle against Covid-19 and the annual flu season.

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Working with WHO and Unicef

Facebook is working with global health organizations like the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in identifying vaccine misinformation and hoaxes and banning them.

Facebook is also working with the WHO and Unicef to share correct vaccine messages across the platform and provide them with analytics on how to reach as many people as possible.

Diane Summers, a senior adviser at Unicef, said that Unicef has always put vaccines as a global priority. By building demand for vaccination, it can help save lives.

According to Summers, by collaborating with Facebook, they will be able to address vaccine misinformation and share resonant and reassuring information on vaccination.

Vaccine Misinformation and Social Media

According to a study conducted, people who get their information from social media are more likely to be misinformed about vaccines, compared to those who rely on traditional media. Since traditional media more likely reflect the scientific facts, information from them is more reliable.

Facebook states that its social media platform aims to build community and connect with others. Since a person's search history is remembered, it may intentionally connect with people who share the same views on vaccination. 

Vaccine-promoting agencies must continue to make their presence felt online so that people who are researching information about vaccination will be able to encounter evidence-based information online.

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