Social media giants are about to be held to account for vaccine misinformation

As COVID-19 cases see a rise in the US, Democratic senators are planning to introduce a new bill that would hold social media giants accountable for public health misinformation.

The new bill would strip away Facebook and other social media platforms’ Section 230 liability shield if they promote harmful public health misinformation.

The Health Misinformation Act, introduced by Senator Amy Klobuchar and Ben Ray Luján would create a carveout in Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act and make social media platforms like Facebook accountable for hosting some dangerous health misinformation.

The bill directs the Health and Human Services secretary to issue clear guidlines on what exactly is “health misinformation.”

Basically, the new rules would only apply in situations where online misinformation is related to an existing public health emergency like the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

How does it work? – It would only open a platform up to liability if the content is being algorithmically amplified, not through “a neutral mechanism, such as through the use of “chronological functionality.”

Senator Klobuchar in a statement said “The coronavirus pandemic has shown us how lethal misinformation can be and it is our responsibility to take action.”

Section 230 protects platforms from liability for illegal content hosted on their platforms — but misinformation is not illegal in itself.