Connecticut Attorney General William Tong and his New York counterpart Letitia James are part of a 12-state coalition of attorneys general calling on Facebook and Twitter to take more aggressive actions to halt anti-vaxxer coronavirus disinformation on their social media platforms.
In letters to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, the attorneys general cited examples where both platforms failed to address the proliferation of anti-vaccination misinformation. They pointed to recent research that found 65% of all anti-vaccine content on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter can be traced to 12 anti-vaxxers’ personal accounts and their associated organizations, groups and websites.
“Covid vaccines only work if people actually get them,” said Tong, who is leading the coalition. “Pseudoscience coronavirus conspiracy theories peddled by a small number of uninformed anti-vaxxers have reached tens of millions of social media followers. These posts are in flagrant violation of Facebook and Twitter policies. Facebook and Twitter must fully and immediately enforce their own policies or risk prolonging this pandemic.”
“The science is clear: this vaccine saves lives, which is why I already received my vaccine and why I encourage all New Yorkers to get their vaccine when eligible,” James said. “As we continue to make strides in vaccinating New Yorkers and recovering from the pandemic, it is imperative that every individual has access to this lifesaving vaccine and the science-based facts about it.
Zuckerberg, Dorsey and Google CEO Sundar Pichai are scheduled to testify today before a joint hearing of the Communications and Technology Subcommittee and the Consumer Protection and Commerce Subcommittee of the U.S. House of Representatives regarding social media’s role in promoting extremism and misinformation.
