Misinformation and Platform Moderation

Introduction: Social media's rapid rise has incited concerns among policymakers and the public regarding its role in spreading misinformation.

Content moderation is a key tool for combating misinformation, but it faces several problems when practiced at scale.

The core issue is the lack of a formally accepted definition for "misinformation".

Misinformation is often defined as information that distorts generally accepted facts.
However, this definition breaks down when applied to contentious topics.

Misinformation is information that runs contrary to or distorts generally accepted facts.

Author's summary: Misinformation spreads via social media due to unclear definitions.

R Street Institute — 2025-10-16