Google will ban ads promoting coronavirus conspiracy theories, remove ads from pages promoting these theories, and demonetize entire sites that frequently violate the policy as of August 18. CNBC reported the news earlier today, noting that it complements the existing ban on monetizing harmful medical information.
A Google spokesperson confirmed that the new policy will cover pages that contradict an “authoritative scientific consensus” on the coronavirus pandemic. While Google is already demonetizing false health claims, it will soon do the same for false claims about the virus’s origins, for example. The policy will not apply to pages that discredit or report the existence of these theories, and does not apply to conspiracy theories unrelated to the coronavirus.
“We are implementing additional safeguards by expanding our harmful health claims policies for both publishers and advertisers to include dangerous content about a health crisis that contradicts the scientific consensus,” said a spokesperson. The edge.
Google and other major web platforms have struggled with an ever-changing information (and disinformation) landscape around the pandemic. The company briefly banned everything related to the non-governmental coronavirus as in March, but lifted the ban after complaints from Democratic campaign organizations. He has also demonetized YouTube videos of the pandemic, a tactic taken on many sensitive topics. And amid the shortage of products at the start of the pandemic, it temporarily banned ads for the sale of face masks, a policy that Facebook also adopted.
It is unclear how much content is currently violating Google’s new rules and whether specific sites would be demonetized under them. For example, The Epoch Times – A newspaper that has widely disseminated the COVID-19 conspiracies, is currently hosting Google ads. High-profile ad deletions have caused controversy in the past, including a temporary demonetization of the conservative site Zero coverage for widespread racism in your comment section. Google confirmed last week that it had reinstated advertising for the site after moderation changes.
