F.Y.I.

Pinterest introduces measures against voter misinformation

Pinterest has introduced several measures of identifying, preventing and removing false and misleading content that could interfere with the upcoming Australian election.

The announcement:

In advance of the general elections this year in Australia, France, Brazil and the Philippines we’re introducing a new way for Pinners to find ideas about civic engagement in their country. People use Pinterest to discover ideas that bring them joy, learn something new or find products to buy, whether it’s a new recipe, how to style a look or bring the latest beauty trend to life. And, while most people don’t visit Pinterest with politics in mind, the platform can be a place for information on topics like elections or how to vote.

On Pinterest, we are committed to offering the most nourishing, emotionally-healthy and brand-safe place for Pinners, creators and brands to go from inspiration to realisation.

To fulfill our mission to bring everyone the inspiration to create a life they love, we’re committed not only to serving inspiring ideas but also to preventing, identifying and removing harmful content including misinformation and hate speech.

Actions we’re taking ahead of the elections in each of these countries include:

Search advisory

When Pinners search for terms like vote or elections, we will show them a search advisory featuring the following message: “If you’re looking for information about the 2022 elections, including how and where to vote, please visit an official website”. This advisory will be shown to Pinners in France, Australia, the Philippines and Brazil. The official sources we’ll be redirecting Pinners to include the French Ministry of Interior, the Australian Electoral Commission, the Philippine Commission on Elections and the Brazilian Electoral Court.

In addition to electoral content, we also display search advisories through our Expert Search function when Pinners search for topics like “vaccines” or “Covid information” that are populated with relevant and informational content by third party organisations. .

Do not push election-related content

As we get closer to Election Day, we know public discourse will grow louder, and we want Pinterest to remain a place for inspiration and positivity. That’s why, as we near each election, we’ll limit search recommendations for election-related content in places like the home feed, related Pins, notifications or “more ideas” within a board.

No public figures exception

We do not have an exception for public figures in our community guidelines. Everyone on Pinterest has to abide by the same Community Guidelines—no exceptions. If someone publishes content that violates our policies on misinformation, hate speech, etc. we will take action on it, whether or not they’re a public figure.

We don’t monetise elections-related content

Since 2018, we have not accepted political campaign ads on Pinterest. Additionally we do not monetise election-related content. That means we won’t show any ads when you search for common election-related search terms like candidate names, “polling place”, and “vote”.

Civic misinformation policy update

We always want to be clear about what content and advertising we do and don’t allow on Pinterest. That’s why we worked hard to enforce our comprehensive Civic Misinformation Policy. We want to make it clear that we take a strong stance against any content that might interfere with the election or with someone’s ability to vote.

Pinners need a source for inspiration, and there is nothing inspiring about spreading misinformation.

Source: Pinterest

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