Twitter partners with AP, Reuters to fight misinformation

Twitter is partnering with The Associated Press and Reuters as part of an initiative to help combat misinformation on the platform. 

Through the program, Twitter’s curation team will work with the outlets to provide more context on emerging news stories, according to the Monday announcement. 

For example, users on Twitter can expect to see more “Trends” on the platform that include “contextual description and links to reporting from trusted sources more frequently.” 

Through the program, Twitter also aims to “proactively” provide context on topics that are garnering widespread interest. 

“Rather than waiting until something goes viral, Twitter will contextualize developing discourse at pace with or in anticipation of the public conversation,” it said in the blog post.

Twitter’s “Birdwatch” feature, a user-based forum to combat misinformation that it launched earlier this year, will also use feedback from the AP and Reuters as a way to assess the quality of information elevated by users. 

The partnership with the newswires comes as Twitter and other social media companies have faced increased scrutiny over the spread of misinformation on their platforms, especially from the Biden administration and Democrats over viral false claims about COVID-19 and vaccines. 

During the initial phase of the program, the news outlets will only focus on English-language content.

Twitter and other tech giants have faced pressure to crack down on misinformation in Spanish and other languages. 

Meanwhile, the platform and its social media peers have faced pressure from Republicans over their enforcement action taken to remove posts or ban accounts of politicians that violate their policies. 

Twitter said in the announcement that AP and Reuters will not be involved in enforcement decisions of Twitter rules.