A polar bear in Repulse Bay, Nunavut Territory, Canada.
Paul Souders | Getty Images
Facebook announced on Thursday that it will now debunk common myths about climate change, by leaning further on the role of “arbitrator of truth” that the company had once renounced.
The social media company said it is adding a section to its climate change information center with facts and accurate information about climate change misconceptions. This includes the fact that polar bear populations are declining due to global warming, as well as the fact that too much carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is harmful to the plant life on Earth.
The company said it plans to rely on experts from George Mason University, the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication and the University of Cambridge to identify and debunk climate change myths.
Facebook has introduced and relied on these information hubs as an important part of its tactic to combat the widespread problem of misinformation about its services. It is a stark reversal of CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s statement last May, when he defended rampant politicians’ speeches on the platform, saying he did not believe that “Facebook or internet platforms in general should be arbitrators of the truth.”
Past examples include a Covid-19 information center launched in March and a voting information center launched in August.
Facebook introduced its climate change information center in September, shortly after the company produced a report making false claims that wildfires in Oregon had been started by Antifa members. That report had gone viral on the social network.
Facebook also announced on Thursday that it will now add information labels to posts about climate change that direct people to its climate change information center.
Additionally, the company said it will now expand this hub to users in Belgium, Brazil, Canada, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Mexico, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Spain, South Africa and Taiwan. The feature is available in the US, UK, France and Germany.
Users in other countries are referred to the UN Environmental Program by Facebook when they search for climate-related terms on the service, the company said.