Facebook tries to cut down on hoaxes

The Associated Press Facebook has a new fix for fibs. The Menlo Park, California-based social media company said Tuesday that it has updated its service to redu...

The Associated Press

Facebook has a new fix for fibs.

The Menlo Park, California-based social media company said Tuesday that it has updated its service to reduce the number of hoaxes that appear in users’ news feeds. These posts — which include scams or deliberately false or misleading news stories — can annoy users.

Facebook will look at how often users report an item as false — a new feature — and how often users delete the item.

Facebook won’t remove the items. But it will reduce how often offending posts show up in news feeds. Posts will also appear with a message saying that many others on Facebook have reported it as false.

Facebook says humorous and satirical content should not be affected.

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