YouTube applied its so-called “medical misinformation” policy more broadly than ever when the platform removed and then later restored content criticizing laws allowing 11-year-olds to be vaccinated without parental consent.
The platform removed an interview that Family Research Council President Tony Perkins had with liberal anti-vax group Children’s Health Defense (CHD) President Mary Holland.The two discussed a recent law bypassing parental consent for vaccines in Washington, D.C. FRC’s legislative affiliate FRC Action reported that YouTube flagged the video for allegedly spreading “‘medical misinformation.’” “‘[T]ech giants, like YouTube, are allowing social media to be weaponized by the Left to eliminate all counter views,’” Perkins said in a press release.
Holland told Perkins that CHD filed a lawsuit against the city for its Minor Consent for Vaccinations Amendment Act of 2020. The law, Perkins summarized, allows 11-year-old children and older to receive federally recommended vaccines "without parental knowledge or consent if the health care provider believes the [minor] is capable of meeting the informed consent standard."
YouTube removed the interview from its platform three days after it was posted claiming that the video violated the platform's "Community Guidelines." Perkins later maintained that “there was no discussion whatsoever of medical advice — the substance of the interview was focused on parental rights, consent, and notification.” FRC attempted to appeal YouTube’s decision but was rejected at the time, according to the organization’s press release. The video, however, was eventually reinstated.
YouTube mirrors other platforms with its vage and inconsistent guidelines on content, particularly on vaccines. Project Veritas purportedly uncovered that Facebook flags posts and comments with what the company considers “vaccine hesitancy.” And last month both Facebook and Twitter censored stories of patients with alleged severe paralytic reactions to the COVID-19 vaccine.
The FRC is a partner of the Free Speech Alliance. The Free Speech Alliance is made up of more than 70 organizations that oppose the silencing of conservative voices on social media.
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