Most major online platforms performed poorly in meeting fact-checking obligations according to an investigation conducted by the European Digital Media Observatory (EDMO), which is tasked with monitoring the EU’s disinformation work.
Meta, Microsoft, and TikTok scored “partial” to “low” in their commitment to empowering fact-checkers in the EU, while Google scored “high”, the investigation found.
Platforms have committed to strengthening partnerships with fact-checkers, as well as providing them with better information and financial support under the EU’s Disinformation Code, which is set to be integrated into the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA) on 1 July.
The EDMO report, for instance, found that while platforms apply fact-checking labels, they only – in a few cases – provided credible evidence of the measures’ effectiveness.
The report used information from transparency reports sent by Meta, Google, Microsoft and TikTok, which are obliged to submit them twice a year under the DSA, the bloc’s legally binding online rulebook.
Since 2018, the four platforms have also been signed up to the EU’s (voluntary) Disinformation Code. But, from next month, there may be a change of gear as the Code is formally folded into the DSA – meaning adherence gains legal significance.
That said, while the Disinformation Code encourages the use of third-party fact-checking organisations, earlier this year Meta announced that it would end its fact-checking programme in the US – also saying it would look at eventually ending it in the EU too.
The EDMO report cautions that there is a clear gap between platforms’ commitments to the Code and verifiable evidence of implementation. Without strong enforcement, the Disinformation Code remains “performative” rather than impactful, it added.
(nl)
