Facebook to tackle coronavirus vaccine misinformation

Facebook is launching a media literacy campaign to tackle the spread of false information about the coronavirus vaccine.

It follows vaccine minister Nadhim Zahawi last month telling Sky News the government was battling a "tsunami of disinformation" around the jabs as well as the

coronavirus

pandemic itself.

Facebook previously announced that it would be

banning proven false claims

about **COVID-19

** vaccines, but warned it would "not be able to start enforcing these policies overnight".

Now, alongside independent fact checking organisation Full Fact, the social media giant will be running a series of online ads over the next month to encourage users to detect fake stories about COVID-19 and other topics by using a three-step checklist:

1. Check The Source

Scrutinise content, even if it appears science based

2. Check How It Makes You Feel

False news can manipulate feelings for clicks

3. Check The Context

Look to public health authorities to confirm content

It comes as the UK has administered more than 22 million first doses of vaccine, although authorities are concerned that misinformation is preventing some people from accepting the jab.

Last May, the chair of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport select committee, Julian Knight,

claimed there were

"record levels of misinformation and disinformation online about COVID-19

, some of it deadly".

In a statement, Full Fact's chief executive Will Moy warned: "Throughout this pandemic we’ve seen how bad information puts lives at risk. With vaccine rollout now underway, knowing what to trust is more crucial than ever.

"We've worked with Facebook to create three simple questions people should ask themselves when reading about coronavirus online.

"Where's it from? What are other news outlets or public health authorities saying? And how does it make you feel? People who make false news try to manipulate your feelings.

"Taking a moment to think before sharing something with friends and family will help keep everyone safe. We all have a part to play in slowing the spread of false claims and dangerous health advice," Mr Moy added.

Steve Hatch, the vice president for Northern Europe at Facebook, said: "The fight against COVID-19 is at a critical stage and connecting people with accurate information is more important than ever.

"Improving media literacy in partnership with Full Fact is one of a number of steps we've taken to tackle coronavirus related misinformation."

Sky News recently reported that anti-vaccination books are being

sold on Amazon and the websites of Waterstones and Foyles

• amid calls for warnings on items to combat the spread of misinformation.

Mr Zahawi has told Sky News: "We're translating everything into 20 languages, from Arabic, to Farsi, to Hindi, to Polish, across the board. We have to reach those hard-to-reach groups.

"Although vaccine positivity in the UK - adults saying they will take the vaccine - is at 89%, the 11% that are vaccine hesitant or have questions skew heavily towards some of the ethnic communities - the black and Afro-Caribbean communities, the Indian and Pakistani and Bangladeshi communities."

Mr Zahawi has

previously spoken

of his concerns surrounding the low uptake of jabs among BAME communities.

He told Sky's Sophy Ridge on Sunday earlier this month: "If one particular community remains unvaccinated, then the virus will seek them out and it will go through that community like wildfire and that's not something any of us wish to see."