Internal Facebook documents detail how misinformation spreads to users
CBSN
Ahead of the 2020 election, Facebook implemented safeguards to protect against the spread of misinformation by prioritizing safety over growth and engagement. It rolled back those defenses after the election, allowing right-wing conspiratorial content to fester in the weeks leading up to the January 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol, according to a whistleblower. Facebook statement on suggestion it has mislead the public and investors:
Frances Haugen, a former Facebook employee, filed at least eight separate complaints with the Securities and Exchange Commission, alleging that the social network "misled investors and the public about its role perpetuating misinformation and violent extremism relating to the 2020 election and January 6th insurrection," including removing "safety systems" put in place ahead of the 2020 election. "As is evident from the news and our numerous public statements over the past several years, Facebook has confronted issues of misinformation, hate speech, and extremism and continues to aggressively combat it. Unsurprisingly, we expressly disclose to investors that these risks have and do and may in the future occur on our platform."
"And as soon as the election was over, they turned them back off or they changed the settings back to what they were before, to prioritize growth over safety," Haugen said in an interview with "60 Minutes" correspondent Scott Pelley. Claim removing safety systems after the 2020 election allowed divisive content to spread:
On May 7, health influencer Paul Saladino, M.D.. posted a video to his X account that promoted feeding "raw dairy" to infants. The post received over 90,000 views and sparked strong backlash before it was removed the following day. Saladino regularly advocates for "animal-based" diets featuring raw milk, including on his TikTok channel where he has over half a million followers.
Everywhere you look, things are getting more complicated. Our phones have over a thousand settings. Showerheads come with apps. Cars have touchscreens. Ovens have touchscreens. "There's no doubt that 'featuritis' is real," said design consultant Jakob Nielsen. "Most of these things are too complicated."
New research is adding to the evidence linking ultra-processed foods to health concerns. The study tracked people's habits over 30 years and found those who reported eating more of certain ultra-processed foods had a slightly higher risk of death — with four categories of foods found to be the biggest culprits.