Anti-vaxx moms gets fake news from Facebook, teen tells Congress

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

A teenager who made headlines after defying his anti-vaxx mother testified in front of Congress on Tuesday, saying his mother's misinformation stemmed from social media.

Ethan Lindenberger, a teenager from of Norwalk, Ohio, traveled to Washington, D.C., to speak at a health, education, labor and pension committee hearing Tuesday on a panel alongside health experts including John Wiesman, Washington state's Secretary of Health.

Lindenberger said as he approached high school and questioned why he wasn't vaccinated, his mother often met him with misinformation she found online and in social media groups — never trusting health officials. He recalled showing his mother articles from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and her replying with skepticism.

"That’s what they want you to think," she would tell him, Lindenberger said Tuesday.

In a question-and-answer portion of the hearing, Lindenberger named Facebook as one of the sites his mother used often to wrongly suggest vaccines could cause harm. He also said she has posted videos with fake news on the site.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/health-news/anti-vaxx-moms-gets-fake-news-from-facebook-teen-tells-congress/ar-BBUp7Rw?li=BBnb7Kz

Facebook and YouTube are two of the biggest sources of fake news.

[Aristus]

1. Good for him for using his brain.

"That's what they want you to think" is the battle-cry of brain-dead conspiracy nuts everywhere...

[jberryhill]

2. Things the government wants you to think, include....

Cigarette smoking causes cancer.

You should eat healthy food and exercise regularly.

You should not drive more than 25 miles per hour in residential areas.

It can be hazardous to travel to North Korea.

I mean, good golly, is there no end to what they want us to believe?

[mr_lebowski]

5. It's all a CONSPIRACY, I tells ya!!! (nt)

[jberryhill]

9. But what if thats what they want you to think?

Eh? Eh? Ever consider that one?

[mr_lebowski]

10. DUDE!!!

[Girard442]

3. I'm a 1st amendment fanatic, but...

...wouldn’t it be nice if the truth could sue for being libeled?

[trixie2]

4. I am glad he caught up with his vaccinations

[Initech]

6. Good for him!

The anti-vaccination movement needs to die the horrible death it deserves, and I am glad that more people like him are speaking out against this madness.

[Javaman]

7. "That's what they want you to think," she would tell him

that's because the CDC are fucking experts!

fuck, their "logic" just defies me.

[Hekate]

8. Zuckerberg has a lot to answer for

[Caliman73]

11. Yes, because they are the largest social media sites.

There is also a wealth of good information on those sites. Anytime you have a more open platform where user content is the main source of posting, you are running a big risk of getting fake information, even coordinated fake information. The choice is how much do you want to spend in resources to go after the fake content? I am sure many would say, "as much as it takes to keep fake information out" but in a business that can be difficult and costly.


I don't know the solution. You don't want to over regulate to the point where ANY controversial content is stripped away because that could affect marginalized voices. Critical thinking skills being taught in school is probably a minimum intervention at this point.