The Meta group has just announced the upcoming withdrawal of its CrowdTangle tool, which was used to monitor disinformation on Instagram And Facebook. A decision warmly welcomed by media professionals.
So what path does Meta want to take on the issue of disinformation? Last February, the group concluded a sort of “super pact” with other giants in the sector such as Google or Amazon, in order to protect the next election from disinformation. Now today, in a sort of step backwards, we learn that Mark Zuckerberg’s group will put an end to a tool that was used to combat disinformation.
CrowdTangle will disappear from Meta platforms in August
For several years, Meta has made CrowdTangle software available to its users, which made it possible to track anything resembling disinformation, from conspiracy theories to manipulation campaigns originating from abroad. Very useful software therefore, which will nevertheless be removed from Meta’s networks on August 14.
Instead, the Californian group explained that it will offer a library of content. A replacement not at the level for professionals, as former CrowdTangle general manager Brandon Silverman explains: “ This is brand new technology that Meta has yet to build to protect the integrity of elections. »
Future consequences for the 2024 American presidential election?
Among professionals in the field, there is also concern. “ Removing Access to CrowdTangle Will Significantly Limit Independent Damage Monitoring » thus indicated to AFP the research director of the Institute for Strategic Dialogue, Melanie Smith.
It must be said that this announcement comes at the worst time. CrowdTangle will in fact be made unavailable just a few months before the United States presidential election, that is to say during the months when we risk potentially seeing the most disinformation campaigns appear. Does this decision not risk being roundly criticized against Meta if the result of the next election were to be influenced by fake news?
Source : The world
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