YouTube removed 30,000 videos with vaccine misinformation

YouTube has taken down more than 30,000 videos containing misinformation about the coronavirus vaccine since October, a company spokesperson told The Hill Thursday.

The videos “included claims about COVID-19 vaccinations that contradict local health authorities or the World Health Organization,” Elena Hernandez said in a statement.

The platform has taken down 800,000 videos for general COVID-19 misinformation since February of last year.

Containing coronavirus misinformation, specifically about the vaccines that are now available to the public, has been a challenge for social media platforms.

Facebook and Twitter have instituted similar policies to remove COVID-19 vaccine misinformation, which experts say can contribute to vaccine hesitancy.

Although YouTube has taken down many videos and elevated trusted sources, several potentially dangerous videos skate by their filters untouched.

A recent investigation by Media Matters for America found that videos pushing the falsehood that vaccines are being used as a vehicle to implant microchips in patients were pulling in hundreds of thousands of views.