Facebook is punishing QAnon.
Angela Lang/CNET
Facebook stated Tuesday that it’ll remove Facebook pages, groups and Instagram accounts representing QAnon, a reactionary conspiracy theory that wrongly declares there’s a “deep state” plot versus President Donald Trump, even if posts do not include violent material.
The social media network’s harder position follows Facebook stated in August that it would eliminate these QAnon accounts, pages and groups when they went over prospective violence, and would restrict the reach of users connected to the motion.
Facebook stated it’s taking strong action versus QAnon material since it’s seen posts that consisted of various kinds of damage, such as incorrect claims that specific groups began the west coast wildfires. Misinformation about the wildfires diverted the attention of regional authorities combating the fires.
“Additionally, QAnon messaging changes very quickly and we see networks of supporters build an audience with one message and then quickly pivot to another. We aim to combat this more effectively with this update that strengthens and expands our enforcement against the conspiracy theory movement,” Facebook stated.
The social media network stated it eliminated more than 1,500 QAnon pages and groups which contained conversations of prospective violence. The business likewise took down over 6,500 pages and groups connected to more than 300 militarized social motions.
At the exact same time, Facebook has actually been slammed by advocacy groups and political leaders for not acting rapidly enough to suppress the spread of QAnon material. Some legislators applauded Facebook for taking a harder position versus QAnon however stated they’d watch on how the policy gets carried out.
“Ultimately the real test will be whether Facebook actually takes measures to enforce these new policies — we’ve seen in a myriad of other contexts, including with respect to right-wing militias like the Boogaloos, that Facebook has repeatedly failed to consistently enforce its existing policies,” Sen. Mark Warner, a Virginia Democrat, stated in a declaration.
Facebook stated it would begin imposing the brand-new policy versus QAnon material now, however that “this work will take time and need to continue in the coming days and weeks.”
