Germany is proposing a new law that would require companies such as Facebook to open offices specifically to combat false news. The policy could see fines of €500,000 for each item of fake news or hate speech not removed within 24 hours imposed on the social network firm. The country’s ruling coalition hopes to have laws combatting such stories in place before the parliamentary elections next year. Facebook, which last week pledged to work with fact-checking sites such as Thomas Oppermann, claims that it is not a media company.
Germany is proposing a new law that would require companies such as Facebook to open offices specifically to combat false news. The policy could see fines of €500,000 for each item of fake news or hate speech not removed within 24 hours imposed on the social network firm. The country’s ruling coalition hopes to have laws combatting such stories in place before the parliamentary elections next year. Facebook, which last week pledged to work with fact-checking sites such as Snopes, claims that it is not a media company.