Last update: May 20, 2022 2:41 AM
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On Thursday, Twitter began implementing an important step to reduce misleading tweets about the course of the conflict and the battles waged by Russia against its neighbor Ukraine.
According to Twitter’s statement, the new warning notices will give users a specific alert that this or that Tweet has violated Twitter’s rules.
The platform does not hereby extend or recommend these Tweets, and their retweets are also disabled as long as they carry those tags.
Speaking to Archyde.com, Yoel Roth, Twitter’s head of safety and integrity, said this approach could be “a more effective way to intervene to prevent harm, while preserving and protecting freedom of expression on the platform.”
The company will prioritize adding labels to misleading tweets from high-profile accounts such as authorized users or official government files.
It will also prioritize content that may cause harm to people on Earth.
Twitter said the policy would initially focus on international armed conflicts but was also intended for events such as mass shootings or natural disasters.
“While the timeline for this work began before the outbreak of war in Ukraine, the need for this policy became more and more apparent with the outbreak of the conflict in Ukraine,” Roth said.
Twitter’s decision, which aims to block misinformation about the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which Moscow claims is a “special military operation”, is part of a new policy for the tweets site, to contribute to refuting the false narrative that its promoters are trying to circumvent the painful reality of the war on Ukraine, which has continued since February 24 last.
Social media platforms have faced increased scrutiny over how misinformation is identified and dealt with.
Twitter’s decision came as it was initially approved to be sold to electric car company Teela CEO Elon Musk, who said he believed the site should be a platform for free speech.