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Youtube to Start Taking Down Content Questioning Election Results

3 mins read

Online video streaming platform, Youtube, announced it would be removing new conspiracy videos on its site that spread misinformation about voter fraud and the 2020 U.S. presidential elections results.

Election misinformation content

The company’s new policy would affect only new videos uploaded from this Wednesday. However, it would not remove the thousands of videos that have already been placed onto the platform, which are prominently filled with conspiracy content.

In a statement, Youtube officials said, “Yesterday was the safe-harbor deadline for the U.S. Presidential election, and enough states have certified their election results to determine a President-elect.” It added that they would begin to remove content that would otherwise go against the results of the certifications and attempt to mislead the general public about the winner.

Spokesperson Ivy Choi confirmed that the platform would allow content uploaded before December 9 to stay on the site, even if questions the election results or the validity of election security She said, “Content that is not violative/stays up will show our information panel, which will be updated to reflect the election results certification status.”

Continuous fight against false information

On November 4, pro-Trump, far-right cable channel, One America News Network, which the president has previously endorsed, posted a video claiming that the Republican candidate won another four years in office while votes were still being counted in swing states.

Many people criticized Youtube for allowing the video to stay on their platform and spread misinformation about the results of the electoral process. The content had garnered nearly half a million views. The online streaming company only placed a notice on the page that said the results of the elections have not yet been finalized and only later followed Biden’s certification and updated their notice.

Now, Facebook has taken it a step further by putting a complete sitewide ban on content that questions election results or sounds support for the Trump campaign’s legal battle about voting fraud.

Other platforms have also been restrictive against such content. Twitter has continued to mark as “false and misleading” tweets about the election with warning labels, including those that President Trump posted from his account, Buzzfeed News reported.

The social media giant, Facebook, has also continuously labelled pro-Trump or voter fraud theories as “conspiracy, violence, and election misinformation” on its platform.

Danielle Joyce Ong

Danielle is a local journalist with a passion for exploring stories related to crime and politics. When Danielle isn't busy writing or reading, she is usually exploring the great outdoors and all the hiking trails in the Bay.

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