YouTube—YouTube implemented COVID-19 and vaccine misinformation removal policies, removing accounts of prominent anti-vaxxers
In May 2020, YouTube published its COVID-19 Medical Misinformation Policy banning content contradicting WHO or local health authorities. In 2021, YouTube expanded the policy to cover all vaccines and removed accounts of prominent anti-vaccination activists including Joseph Mercola and Robert Kennedy Jr. Studies showed the policy significantly reduced the rate of misinformation videos on the platform compared to the pre-policy period.
Scoring Impact
| Topic | Direction | Relevance | Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Consumer Protection | +toward | secondary | +0.50 |
| Content Moderation | +toward | primary | +1.00 |
| Misinformation | -against | primary | +1.00 |
| Overall incident score = | +0.737 | ||
Score = avg(topic contributions) × significance (high ×1.5) × confidence (0.59)
Evidence (1 signal)
YouTube published COVID-19 medical misinformation policy banning content contradicting WHO guidance
YouTube published its COVID-19 Medical Misinformation Policy on May 20, 2020, banning content that contradicts WHO or local health authorities' medical information about COVID-19. In 2021, YouTube expanded the policy to cover all vaccines and removed accounts of prominent anti-vaccination activists including Joseph Mercola and Robert Kennedy Jr. Research showed the policy significantly reduced misinformation compared to pre-policy periods.