Google-owned video platform YouTube has reportedly removed more than 30,000 videos that the Masters of the Universe claim made misleading or false claims about coronavirus vaccines over the last six months.
AXIOS reports that YouTube spokesperson Elena Hernandez has revealed that YouTube has removed more than 30,000 videos that it claims made misleading or false claims about coronavirus vaccines in the last six months, providing the first release of numbers on the topic.
YouTube began including vaccination misinformation in its COVID-19 medical misinformation policy in October 2020.
Since February 2020, YouTube has removed more than 800,000 videos containing coronavirus misinformation, the videos are first flagged by the company’s AI or a human reviewer. The videos are then sent for another level of review before a decision is made on whether or not to remove them.
Videos that violate YouTube’s policy relating to misinformation about vaccines include those that contradict expert consensus on the vaccines from health authorities or the World Health Organization.
Accounts that violate YouTube’s policy rules are subject to its “strike” system which can result in accounts being permanently banned from the platform.
Facebook and Twitter have adopted similar policies to YouTube and have worked to remove misleading information about the coronavirus and vaccines from their various platforms.
Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship. Follow him on Twitter @LucasNolan or contact via secure email at the address lucasnolan@protonmail.com