It's a pity, when something that could be very helpful to society in a pandemic, is 'weaponised' against people. Recent studies suggest that Facebook's algorithm directs people to sites providing false or misleading information about Covid-19, rather than medically-approved sites. The top 10 misinformation sites reportedly get 4 times the number of views that medically reputable sites receive (https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/aug/19/facebook-funnelling-readers-towards-covid-misinformation-study). These misinformation sites have characteristics that are not unlike the virus per se (they are small in numbers but spread rapidly). There appear to be just over 80 sites in 5 countries, that generated 3.8bn reads last year. Just over 40 are 'superspreader' sites, actively pushing people towards false information. The consequences can be deadly. Around 800 deaths in Bangladesh, have been directly linked to one posted piece of erroneous information. Facebook needs to win its infowar, if its reputation is not to be completely trashed. In spite of giving assurances, it seems to be losing at present.
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