MPs grill X, TikTok and Meta about online misinformation

U.K. Minister of State Julia Lopez speaks before the House of Commons Science, Innovation and Technology Committee. The SITC grilled social media tech companies last month regarding the detrimental impacts of mis- and disinformation on their platforms.

ComputerWeekly.com
Social media companies have defended their content moderation practices to a Parliamentary committee investigating online misinformation, arguing that they already have effective processes and systems in place to deal with the spread of false information on their platforms.

On 25 February 2025, the Commons Science, Innovation and Technology Committee (SITC) grilled tech giants X, TikTok and Meta as part of its inquiry into online misinformation and harmful algorithms.

Opening the session, committee chair Chi Onwurah said the topic has unusually “strong public interest” for a technology-related issue, and that the committee is concerned about misinformation “being disseminated at industrial scale”. She added that this particular session would primarily focus on the spread of disinformation during the Southport Riots in 2024.

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