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YouTube Announces New Moves to Combat Misinformation
Conspiracy theories begone?
By Lawrence Bonk Lawrence Bonk News Reporter Florida State University Lawrence Bonk is a tech news reporter for Lifewire, specializing in gaming, AI, VR, and consumer tech, including iOS, macOS, wearables, and more. lifewire's editorial guidelines Updated on February 17, 2022 01:19PM EST Fact checked by Jerri Ledford Fact checked by Jerri Ledford Western Kentucky University Gulf Coast Community College Jerri L. Ledford has been writing, editing, and fact-checking tech stories since 1994. Her work has appeared in Computerworld, PC Magazine, Information Today, and many others. lifewire's fact checking process Tweet Share Email Tweet Share Email Streaming Mobile Phones Internet & Security Computers & Tablets Smart Life Home Theater & Entertainment Software & Apps Social Media Streaming Gaming Conspiracy theories and misinformation used to be relatively benign affairs involving bigfoot, faked moon landings, and government coverups of UFOs, but those days have changed. Modern misinformation efforts seek to disrupt the political process or further complicate the already complicated COVID-19 pandemic, and they spread like wildfire across social media. YouTube, however, has just announced some new moves to limit misinformation on their platform, according to a company blog post. Unsplash / Mockup Photos The uber-popular streaming platform is taking a three-tiered approach to stomping out misinformation. It starts with an improved machine-learning algorithm to catch offending content before it gets a chance to spread. Neal Mohan, YouTube's chief product officer, says they'll also provide videos on certain topics with fact-check boxes. Next, there's limiting cross-platform sharing of this misinformation. As you know, Google owns YouTube, and links and embeds of controversial videos are difficult problems to address. Mohan says they are experimenting with various fixes, including adding interstitials, or warnings, to certain videos and limiting shares of others. However, the company is aware that balancing public safety with freedom of expression is an ever-evolving concept. "We need to be careful to balance limiting the spread of potentially harmful misinformation, while allowing space for discussion of and education about sensitive and controversial topics," Mohan wrote. Finally, there's addressing misinformation in languages other than English. Machine learning comes into play again, as algorithms are being programmed to learn regional and hyperlocal nuances to catch stuff early. Also, YouTube will be hiring "local teams and experts" to tackle misinformation on the street level. In January, over 80 fact-checking groups sent a letter to YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki to demand the company do something about its misinformation problem. Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day Subscribe Tell us why! Other Not enough details Hard to understand Submit More from Lifewire What Is a Meme? The 13 Best Shows to Watch on Discovery Plus Right Now (October 2022) 10 Tips on How to Make Something Go Viral Online What Is Mewe and How Is It Different? Sony State of Play: Announcements, News, and More Data Mining With K-Means Clustering How to Get Unshadowbanned on TikTok How to Find Variance in Excel 13 Best Places to Watch Free Documentaries Online 10 Old Videos That Went Viral Before YouTube Even Existed Move Spam to the Junk Folder Automatically in Mozilla Thunderbird History of Hashtags and Use in Social Media The Truth About Facebook Chain Status Updates How to Set up Guides in Adobe InDesign About Lifewire What Is the 'My name is Jeff' Meme? Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. Cookies Settings Accept All Cookies