The past few months have brought changes to many industries in the physical world: restaurants, entertainment venues, grocery stores. But there have been a number of changes in the virtual world, too, as many people have spent more time than ever before on their screens. The spread of misinformation on platforms like Twitter and Facebook (a problem that predates COVID-19) has moved the companies to examine their role in this crisis, and act to harness their influence for good. One of the clearest examples of this is the recent push among some tech companies to endorse the use of face masks as a way to slow the spread of the virus.
Rising rates of infection across the U.S., paired with the opening up of some regions, have moved the importance of mask-wearing to the forefront. On a national level, there has been little direction on the subject, outside of agencies like the CDC and figures like Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Some states require masks while others bar local authorities from instating their own mask-wearing orders. In this absence of direct messaging on a federal, and sometimes state level, corporations have stepped in. As cases have started to rise across the country, major retailers, including Target, Walmart, and CVS, have begun to require customers to wear masks in stores. This clear stance has appeared online, too.
Last week, Google featured a “Wear a Mask, Save Lives” message at the bottom of its homepage, which linked to a PSA from the CDC. A few weeks ago, Facebook and Instagram rolled out in-app messaging at the top of news feeds, reminding users to do their part and don masks. Yesterday, Facebook took this a step further with its “Coronavirus (COVID-19) Information Center.” (This launched on the same day that Mark Zuckerberg interviewed Dr. Fauci via a livestream.) With this new feature, Facebook aims to combat misinformation and provide users with a centralized source of fact-checked news and local alerts, such as whether masks are required in a user’s area. (Google has had a similar information hub since April.) Other recent civic efforts have included Facebook’s push to register voters ahead of the November elections, and labeling campaign posts about voting with links to government websites.
Facebook has long positioned itself as a positive, apolitical means of connecting the world, but has struggled to fill that role as the nature of social media platforms has evolved over time. While it still refuses to be an “arbiter of truth,” these recent efforts suggest that the company sees itself as something like a public service. User-generated content on platforms like TikTok has served a key function in educating the public as well. Last week, Canadian dentist Olivia Cuid shared her hack for making surgical masks fit better, which was viewed by over 3.7 million. Similarly, Bill Nye (former Science Guy) recently posted a pair of videos on his TikTok demonstrating the effectiveness of different kinds of face coverings. With this messaging, social media has helped to keep protective measures top of mind, reminding those online that their actions in the real world have an impact on the health and safety of others (and themselves).
