In response to widespread claims of fake news on Facebook, the social giant is reportedly creating a tool to curate content from legitimate publishers.
The new feature is reportedly called Collections, and will include lists of curated content from specific publishers in its newsfeed. Business Insider compares the new feature to Snapchat’s Discover section as it will highlight news stories, listicles and videos from a handpicked selection of media publishers.
Facebook has reportedly approached media companies and publishers about participating in its new curated feed, though the social giant has not given a timeline for when the feature will be released.
Facebook faced a wave of criticism during the American federal election regarding the propagation of fake news on its platform, with some claiming that the social network’s new algorithm actually played a role in the final results.
In addition, Facebook was accused earlier this year of suppressing conservative-leaning news sites in favour of liberal-leaning stories. While Facebook vehemently denied these allegations up until recently, executives have begun shifting the narrative towards finding a solution for the problem.
Publishing partners have been told that their content will be inserted into news feeds by Facebook, potentially giving them a much wider reach. Currently, publishers need to pursue likes on content or pay Facebook to boost stories to gain exposure on the platform.
This isn’t the first time Facebook has attempted to enter the news curation space. The company launched Notify, an app designed to curate breaking news content from publishers last year, only to shutter the project after just seven months.
It’s important to note that while this rumoured move addresses the complaints the company has received since the American election, it also gives Facebook an avenue to create yet another feature that resembles Snapchat’s user interface.
Related: Facebook and Google ban fake news sites from generating ad revenue on platforms
[source]Business Insider[/source]
