I & many others have pushed for this for years. I am so glad Facebook has finally created an electoral disinformation monitoring & combatting programme specifically for the South African election. May similar happen for African countries' elections. about.fb.com/news/2024/04/h…

4️⃣ Reduce the visibility of election-related content that has been flagged & is awaiting review.

The Washington Post found that posts claiming the 2022 election was rigged 'were left unchallenged by the social media companies, with no labeling from' Facebook.
washingtonpost.com/technology/202…

Big Tech companies with their lobby groups have been fighting to stop the Kids Code from advancing in states across the country.

But we're not letting up. We helped unanimously pass the #MDKidsCode in the #MDLeg a week ago. 😤 theguardian.com/technology/202…

Meta to close Threads in Turkey to comply with injunction prohibiting data-sharing with Instagram tcrn.ch/4cQVpdj

2024 is the #yearofdemocracy , and will shape the world for years to come, but Big Tech platforms are continuing to aid and abet harms to our democracies! Join the press event on 16 April 2024, 3pm UTC, 8.30 pm IST, 4 pm CET, 11 am EDT to #DoYourPart youtube.com/@DigitalAction…

3️⃣ Require disclosure of AI-generated political content.

'Experts expect efforts to use AI-generated deepfakes to target specific voter blocs... such as Latinos, women, Asian Americans... or any other demographic... to attract, mislead or frighten.'

apnews.com/article/deepfa…

Two new studies show the political risks that follow when Facebook block news, as they did in Canada.

'The news being talked about in political groups is being replaced by memes', with reliability completely gone and disinfo peaking

reuters.com/technology/whe…

Under 16 could be banned from social media under plans due to be unveiled by the government within weeks.

thetimes.co.uk/article/minist…

2️⃣Swiftly enforce rules against election lies and hate in political advertising.

Still, '...Facebook and Instagram, will be able to directly profit from political ads that boost false claims about the legitimacy of the 2020 election.'

cnn.com/business/tech/…

This, from our Brain Trust member Marietje Schaake

Minimum age limits are meaningless unless platforms enforce their own policies.
Effective regulation is needed urgently to help keep children safe online.

Children as young as nine have been added to malicious WhatsApp groups promoting self-harm, sexual violence and racism, a BBC investigation has found.
bbc.co.uk/news/articles/…

UK campaign group Smartphone Free Childhood have urged Meta to reverse its decision to lower the minimum age to use WhatsApp from 16 to 13 amid concerns over children's mental health and safety.
itv.com/news/2024-04-1…

1️⃣ Platforms need to reinstate slashed election-integrity policies.

This year, platforms 'have deprioritized content moderation and other user trust and safety protections... that have reduced the presence of hate, harassment and lies on their networks…”
freepress.net/big-tech-backs…

'For months, advocates have been warning that the rise in audio clips and videos generated by AI is already leading to confusion in elections around the world...'

That's why we're making SIX DEMANDS of big tech.

Full letter👇
freepress.net/sites/default/…

🚨 BREAKING: Today, RFOB, along with more than 200 civil-society organizations, researchers & journalists have sent a letter to leading social-media platforms calling on them to protect democratic elections worldwide in 2024.

Naomi Nix

washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/…

Failure to uphold & enforce election-integrity policies and expand non-English staffing to monitor disinfo, political deepfakes & other harmful content will be catastrophic to free & fair elections worldwide. From me, Maria Ressa, Center for Countering Digital Hate Check My Ads: freepress.net/news/press-rel…

📣From our founding board member Maria Ressa “If you don’t have integrity of facts, you cannot have integrity of elections. Protect our public-information ecosystem by returning agency back to voters around the world during this crucial year.”

freepress.net/news/press-rel…