WASHINGTON: The head of the world’s main fact-checking network said on Wednesday she was “deeply concerned” by Meta’s decision to begin testing its Community Notes system in 16 Latin American countries, a step towards ending the fact-checking programme it runs in the region.
“The community notes programme alone is simply not adequate when it comes to reducing the impact of harmful falsehoods on social media platforms,” Angie Holan, director of the International Fact-Checking Network, of which AFP is a member, said in a statement.
Meta said it had begun testing Community Notes in 16 Spanish-speaking countries in Latin America, a step toward replacing the professional fact-checking programme it runs with partner organisations across the region.
The crowdsourced notes system, modeled on the one used by Elon Musk’s X, is designed to supplant checks carried out by accredited newsrooms and fact-checking agencies, which Meta ended in the United States last year.
Meta said it hoped the notes would become the standard way it adds context to misleading posts on Facebook, Instagram and Threads, ending the need for the fact-checking programme.
