U.S President says Facebook is “killing people”

Facebook has gone on the defence after US President Joe Biden claimed the social media giant is killing people.

The President said Facebook was allowing misinformation about coronavirus vaccines to proliferate.

Asked for his message to social media platforms regarding vaccinations, Biden said, “They’re killing people.”

“The only pandemic we have is among the unvaccinated, and that’s — they’re killing people,” he continued.

But Facebook has rejected the allegation, saying the facts tell a different story.

Facebook says 2 billion people have viewed the science that vaccination works on the platform, and that more than 3.3 million Americans used its vaccination finder tool.

FACTS ON VACCINES

Facebook says “The data shows that 85% of Facebook users in the US have been or want to be vaccinated against COVID-19.” 

“President Biden’s goal was for 70% of Americans to be vaccinated by July 4. Facebook is not the reason this goal was missed.”

COVID-19 misinformation has spread during the pandemic on social media sites including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. 

Facebook has encouraged Americans to get inoculated through tools that include its vaccination finder and optional “profile frames” that show when friends have been vaccinated.

American cases of COVID-19 are up 70% over the previous week and deaths are up 26%, with outbreaks occurring in parts of the country with low vaccination rates.