The Twitter logo is displayed on the facade of the company's headquarters in San Francisco. Photo: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Twitter will no longer enforce its COVID-19 misinformation policy, according to a note posted to its website.
Why it matters: This is the latest in a series of changes to the platform that have accompanied Elon Musk's takeover.
State of play: "Effective November 23, 2022, Twitter is no longer enforcing the COVID-19 misleading information policy," the note on a page of Twitter's website outlining the platform's COVID misinformation policy stated.
The big picture: In 2020, Twitter took steps to crack down on coronavirus misinformation. That effort included deleting tweets that spread unproven treatments for COVID and cast doubt on the effectiveness of quarantines.
- Twitter announced last year that it would label tweets with potentially misleading information about COVID-19 vaccines, and introduce a strike system that can lead to permanent account suspension.
- Between January 2020 and September 2022, Twitter said suspended more than 11,000 accounts for violating its COVID misinformation policy and removed more than 100,000 pieces of content that did so.
Of note: Facebook and Instagram's COVID misinformation policies remain in place, a Meta spokesperson told Axios' Sara Fischer. The company has asked its independent Oversight Board to review them.
Musk announced last week that he would introduce a "general amnesty" for suspended Twitter accounts that have "not broken the law" or engaged in "egregious spam."
- The amnesty would begin sometime this week, he said, but did not specify which banned users might be affected by the planned amnesty.
- The move came after Musk reinstated the Twitter accounts of prominent users like former President Trump and Ye, formerly known as Kanye West.
- Musk has ruled out reinstating the Twitter account of far-right conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.