Facebook’s election ‘war room’ takes aim at fake information

Employees work in Facebook’s “War Room,” during a media demonstration on October 17, 2018, in Menlo Park, California. (AFP)

• Days after the surprise victory of President Donald Trump, CEO Mark Zuckerberg brushed off assertions that the outcome had been influenced by fictional news stories on Facebook
• Facebook offered reporters a peek into the war room to show off its improved ability to prevent foreign interference in the upcoming US midterm elections

MENLO PARK, California: Facebook is showing off its new “war room,” a center for combating fake accounts and bogus news stories ahead of upcoming elections.
It’s the social network’s latest public signal that it takes election interference seriously ahead of the midterms.
Facebook didn’t always take the risk of election interference seriously. Days after the surprise victory of President Donald Trump, CEO Mark Zuckerberg brushed off assertions that the outcome had been influenced by fictional news stories on Facebook.
That attitude shifted as criticism of the company mounted.
Facebook offered reporters a peek into the war room to show off its improved ability to prevent foreign interference in the upcoming US midterm elections.
But critics fear the war room is more of a publicity stunt than an effective solution.