Twitter and Facebook are fighting back against a Chinese-based disinformation campaign aimed at discrediting pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong. The social media giants have suspended a number of accounts saying that they have evidence that the Chinese government is directing the campaign. The suspended accounts were also inciting political discord in Hong Kong. (CNBC, August 19, 2019, by Annie Palmer)
The companies have never before taken down disinformation accounts originating in China. Facebook eliminated seven pages, three Facebook Groups and five accounts, and Twitter deleted 936 accounts. (The New York Times, August 19, 2019, by Kate Conger)
In reaction to the Hong Kong campaign, Twitter announced a new policy preventing state-controlled media outlets from advertising on its social network. Outlets such as the British Broadcasting Corp. (BBC) and Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) will still be able to advertise since they operate independently of the governments that contribute money to their operations. (TechCrunch, August 19, 2019, by Jonathan Shieber)