Social media outlets implement self-regulation to limit fake news

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 21 June, 2019
By: Leslie Liao

The Taipei Computer Association announced a series of guidelines on Friday that seeks to limit the spread of disinformation online. Behind the conception of the rulebook are social media industry heavyweights like Google, Facebook, LINE, and Yahoo.

The guidelines outline four major directions and 13 codes of practice to help the public identify online disinformation. Legal advisor for the Taipei Computer Association, Huang Yi-feng, says that combatting disinformation with current legal mechanisms is difficult. Huang says that is why the need for public awareness is so urgent.

Huang says that social media outlets’ hands are tied when it comes to dealing with disinformation, as free speech laws limit how these platforms can restrict problematic posts. Huang says the best way to handle disinformation is to educate the public on how to recognize it and stop its spread.
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