Paris (AFP)
Social networks and online platforms have taken good measures against infox but must be more transparent and efficient, judges the CSA on Thursday in an unpublished report on the fight against infox.
Google, Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter, LinkedIn, Microsoft, JeuxVideo.com, Dailymotion, Doctissimo and Wikipedia have answered questions from the Superior Audiovisual Council which publishes an overview in an 87-page report.
The CSA notes "in a general way" that "the operators seized the stake of the fight against the diffusion of false information, by following several of its recommendations".
"However, these measures still need to be deepened," said the Council.
All operators have implemented information reporting systems, but these systems could be simplified. And users remain poorly informed about the rest of the procedure.
In addition, the operators did not provide enough information concerning the processing of these reports and the "human resources" they devote to them, preventing the CSA "from fully appreciating the scope of the means implemented to respond to the objectives of the law ".
"The information provided is, on certain points, evasive (with a few exceptions, such as Facebook)", notes the CSA. "To justify this choice, some argue the need to protect moderation teams. If the size of the workforce is an element rather informed by the operators, precise elements were not always given on the training of moderators and the work organization. However, this information guarantees the transparency and fairness of the procedures ".
The law against the manipulation of information, adopted at the end of 2018, aims to stem the dissemination of infox during election campaigns. It provides that online platforms take measures against infox, in particular by setting up reporting mechanisms, and obliges them to report their efforts to the CSA in an annual declaration.
The CSA also asks for "increased transparency" concerning the algorithms which identify infoxes. It encourages operators to become more involved in information education and to strengthen their partnerships with the media.
The vast majority of platforms have not specified either "the measures allowing sponsored content to gain visibility, which are at the heart of their economic model" but can also disseminate misleading information. The Council calls on them to take measures to demonetize pages spreading false information.
The CSA wishes that the means of recourse vis-a-vis a decision of the operators are more "clear, exhaustive and transparent". Users can only be made responsible if "the framework in which their freedom is exercised" is "balanced and predictable", he emphasizes.
Several experts in the media, higher education and new technologies, including an AFP journalist, contributed to the preparation of the work of the CSA. Agence France-Presse is participating, with a network of more than 80 specialist journalists in more than 35 countries and 15 languages, in "Third Party Fact-Checking", a verification program by media developed by Facebook.
With this program, which started in December 2016, Facebook pays around sixty media outlets around the world, general or specialized, for the use of their "fact-checks" on its platform and on Instagram. The participating media are completely free in the choice and treatment of their subjects.
© 2020 AFP