Facebook on Tuesday removed a post by Donald Trump and Twitter flagged it for violating rules after the president falsely claimed ...
Facebook on Tuesday removed a post by Donald Trump and Twitter flagged it for violating rules after the president falsely claimed flu is more lethal than COVID-19.
The statement, posted just hours after Trump was released from hospital, read: 'Many people every year, sometimes over 100,000, and despite the Vaccine, die from the Flu.
'Are we going to close down our Country? No, we have learned to live with it, just like we are learning to live with Covid, in most populations far less lethal!!!'
Trump reacted to the removal, tweeting: 'REPEAL SECTION 230!!!'
Under the U.S. law, internet companies are generally exempt from liability for the material users post on their networks. Section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act - itself part of a broader telecom law - provides a legal 'safe harbor' for internet companies.
The coronavirus has killed 210,195 Americans; more than 7.4 million have been infected. The death from the flu has ranged from 12,000 and 61,000 annually since 2010, according to the CDC.
The president tested positive for coronavirus last week and was hospitalized Friday. He staged a dramatic return to the White House Monday night after leaving Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, where he was receiving care.
The president tested positive for coronavirus last week and was hospitalized Friday. He staged a dramatic return to the White House Monday night after leaving Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, where he was receiving care
Facebook on Tuesday removed this post by Donald Trump and Twitter flagged it for violating rules after the president falsely claimed flu is more lethal than COVID-19
Tuesday's post was flagged by Twitter, with the statement: 'This Tweet violated the Twitter Rules about spreading misleading and potentially harmful information related to COVID-19. 'However, Twitter has determined that it may be in the public's interest for the Tweet to remain accessible'
A spokesman for Facebook told CNN the post was removed for breaking its rules on COVID-19 misinformation.
Tuesday's post was flagged by Twitter, with the statement: 'This Tweet violated the Twitter Rules about spreading misleading and potentially harmful information related to COVID-19.
'However, Twitter has determined that it may be in the public's interest for the Tweet to remain accessible.'
Under the U.S. law, internet companies are generally exempt from liability for the material users post on their networks. Section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act - itself part of a broader telecom law - provides a legal 'safe harbor' for internet companies
In August Facebook deleted a post by President Trump which featured a link to a Fox News video in which Trump says children are 'virtually immune' to the virus.
Facebook said that the 'video includes false claims that a group of people is immune from COVID-19 which is a violation of our policies around harmful COVID misinformation.'
Twitter has generally been quicker than Facebook in recent months to label posts from the president that violate its policies against misinformation and abuse.
Trump gives two thumbs up from the Truman Balcony upon his return to the White House from Walter Reed Medical Center, where he underwent treatment for Covid-19, in Washington, DC, on October 5
CEO Mark Zuckerberg had previously refused to take action against Trump posts suggesting that mail-in ballots will lead to voter fraud, saying that people deserved to hear unfiltered statements from political leaders. Twitter, by contrast, slapped a 'get the facts' label on them.
Until June, Trump's posts with identical wording to those labeled on Twitter remained untouched on Facebook, sparking criticism from Trump's opponents as well as current and former Facebook employees.
Announcing the changes Zuckerberg wrote: 'The policies we're implementing today are designed to address the reality of the challenges our country is facing and how they're showing up across our community.'
Navy Cmdr. Sean Conley, said earlier Monday that the president remains contagious and would not be fully 'out of the woods' for another week but that Trump had met or exceeded standards for discharge from the hospital.
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