Meta’s move to “community notes” may hurt online health information providers more than ever

Last week, the social media giant The meta announced big changes to content moderation practices. This includes ending the fact-checking program, starting in the United States.

Meta platforms – including Facebook, Instagram and Threads – will no longer employ human fact-checkers and moderation teams, instead relying on a user-sourced “community notes” model. This is a similar method to current content moderation on Platform X (formerly Twitter).

Meta’s hateful conduct policy also changed last week to allow for more “freedom of speech.” Advocacy groups and experts warn that this could lead to: an increase in the number of offensive and degrading statements about indigenous peoples, migrants and refugees, women and LGBTQIA+ people.

Now also many experts they fear an increase in disinformation and disinformation on Meta platforms.

Health-related content raises concerns about disinformation on the Internet, especially with Covid. There has been less discussion about the potential impact of Meta’s recent policies on sexual and reproductive health information online – but the effects could be profound.

“Marketplace” for health information

Since the COVID pandemic, the number of online platforms has been increasing important for sexual and reproductive health organizations.

On social media, organizations such as Family planning in Australia can easily and inexpensively share factual information about sensitive and potentially stigmatizing public health issues, including unplanned pregnancy and HIV.

For better or worse, Meta platforms are spaces where public health information can reach diverse audiences. This can be particularly helpful for people in rural and regional areas, juvenile people and anyone who does not yet have access to reliable health services.

Facebook and Instagram are “urban markets” for many healthcare providers. But what happens when community members most in need of contraception or sexual health information and services no longer feel unthreatening in this marketplace?

Meta says community notes will be collected from multiple sources to avoid bias. Some online sex educators were initially hopeful that the policy changes could make it easier to share sexual and reproductive health content.

Internal training materials leaked from the Meta program apparently that comments like “gay people are weirdos” or “transgender people are mentally ill” are now acceptable. This would pose significant risks to users and healthcare services sharing information online.

From excessive censorship to targeted attacks

Meta Property The Supervisory Board confirmed that the platform has in the past excessively censored content related to nudity, sexuality and gender. This led to content on sexual and reproductive health blocking or “shadow-locking” (when the content is hidden from other users without the knowledge of the person posting it).

The community notes process replaces human moderators with community input. Information is collected from many users with different political views. A note is then added about flagging misinformation. Meta is currently recruiting users on Threads, Facebook and Instagram to share notes with the US community.

However, research on this system on X has shown that notes are often added several hours later false or misleading content has already gone viral.

Moreover, the process itself can be weaponized. Research into what has been called “user-generated war” found that politically motivated users are already manipulating community guidelines to attack content creators on Instagram and TikTok.

This includes targeted attacks on women’s health and LGBTQIA+ organizations under “opposition to rights“. Around the world, governmental and non-governmental groups have conducted organized campaigns opposing both reproductive freedom and reproductive freedom. trans rights.

Malicious tactics include falsely reporting images that violate community guidelines. They may also include a coordinated accumulation of hate speech in the comments of a social media post.

Women, transgender people and other LGBTQIA+ people are disproportionately affected by these forms of violence social media manipulation. In response, sexual and reproductive health content creators submitted: self-censoring health information or removing yourself from social media platforms.

Where to from here?

Evidence suggests that the shift to community notes has already led many LGBTQIA+ and women’s health organizations close your X accounts.

Healthcare users are also leaving Meta platforms. Some health organizations encourage community members to stay connected through private newsletters and mailing lists.

However, not everyone feels comfortable sharing their email address. Social media platforms provide privacy and anonymity for vulnerable people who may not have access to other sources of reliable information about sexuality and reproduction.

There is no perfect solution. Social media users are discovering recent platforms like Bluesky. This means that sexual and reproductive health service providers will need to be open to experimenting with untested platforms as well.

This can be tough for organizations that have already invested time and money in health promotion on Meta platforms. However, in a rapidly changing global political environment, business as usual is not an option.