Facebook’s and Google’s aim to block Fake News

Undoubtedly this brings up a question, what is fake news? For some articles it’s obvious, but for others it may blur the line between biased and all out false.

The problem with the media landscape in today’s age, is that everyone is a journalist. The pure abundance of information overwhelms us with hundreds of reports on a single event. The issue that comes up with Google and Facebook blocking “fake news, is that it’s denying a freedom expressed in our constitution, the freedom of free speech.

Factual claims that are all out lies can do a great deal of damage to the way people view the world. But like the Associated Press, Google and Facebook should take on the role of displaying factually correct articles at the top of search results instead of banning fake news.

Right now might be a clouded time to see it, but in a technology aided journalistic future we need to have good bullshit meters. We need to be tested with false information, so we can discern good ideas from the bad. In this way we take a more active role in the direction of the country.

Instead of passively taking in media we should take it on ourselves to question the world around us and separate the pure BS from information that runs contrary to our beliefs.

Google and Facebook could instead tackle this problem through design. Within your newsfeed content pops up depending on your past behavior. But the problem is, it all looks the same in your feed. Content at the top being the most likely you will interact with. This is all decided by an algorithm and knowing Google and Facebook this will likely be the way the two companies find fake news.

My suggestion is we get back to having real humans do this work.