President Joe Biden stated on Friday that misinformation about Covid-19 and vaccinations on social media is “killing people,” and the White House stated that Facebook needs to clean up its act.
“They are murdering people. We only have one pandemic, and it is among the unvaccinated. They’re also murdering people “As he left for a weekend at the presidential retreat in Camp David, Biden told reporters at the White House.
The White House is putting more pressure on social media companies to correct widespread misinformation about coronavirus vaccinations, according to officials.
A recent spike in Covid-19 deaths and illnesses across the country, according to US health officials, is almost entirely affecting people who have not been vaccinated.
“There is a clear message that is coming through: this is becoming a pandemic of the unvaccinated,” said Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to reporters on Friday.
Despite the fact that vaccinations are widely available across the United States, many people refuse to get them because they are afraid of the shots.
Anti-vaccine activists’ false posts on the internet, as well as Republican politicians’ claims that vaccinations are part of government control efforts, are fueling scepticism.
Facebook and others, according to White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki, are not doing enough to push back.
“Everyone has a role to play in ensuring that accurate information is available,” she said.
Psaki said the White House was taking a more proactive approach to addressing misinformation, but she insisted that Facebook, in particular, should respond more quickly to problematic posts.
Prolific fake news posters
“On social media platforms, about 12 people are responsible for 65 percent of anti-vaccine misinformation. Despite being banned on other platforms, they are all still active on Facebook “Psaki stated this without naming the dozen posters.
