Social media platforms’ responses to COVID-19-related mis- and disinformation: the insufficiency of self-governance

Wa nke, Lina; Maie , Anna-Lena; Gilbe , Di k Ul ich
A icle — Published Ve sion
Social media pla o ms’ esponses o COVID-19- ela ed
mis- and disin o ma ion: he insu iciency o sel -
go e nance
Jou nal o Managemen and Go e nance
P o ided in Coope a ion wi h:
Sp inge Na u e
Sugges ed Ci a ion: Wa nke, Lina; Maie , Anna-Lena; Gilbe , Di k Ul ich (2024) : Social media
pla o ms’ esponses o COVID-19- ela ed mis- and disin o ma ion: he insu iciency o sel -
go e nance, Jou nal o Managemen and Go e nance, ISSN 1572-963X, Sp inge US, New Yo k, NY,
Vol. 28, Iss. 4, pp. 1079-1115,
h ps://doi.o g/10.1007/s10997-023-09694-5
This Ve sion is a ailable a :
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Jou nal o Managemen and Go e nance (2024) 28:1079–1115
h ps://doi.o g/10.1007/s10997-023-09694-5
1 3
Social media pla o ms’ esponses oCOVID‑19‑ ela ed mis‑
anddisin o ma ion: heinsu iciency o sel ‑go e nance
LinaWa nke1 · Anna‑LenaMaie 2 · Di kUl ichGilbe 3
Accep ed: 11 Decembe 2023 / Published online: 1 Feb ua y 2024
© The Au ho (s) 2024
Abs ac
The sp ead o mis- and disin o ma ion on social media pla o ms is a signi ican
socie al h ea . Du ing he COVID-19 pandemic, mis- and disin o ma ion played
an impo an ole in coun e ac ing public heal h e o s. In his a icle, we explo e
how he h ee mos ele an social media pla o ms, Facebook, YouTube, and Twi -
e , design hei (IT) sel -go e nance as a esponse o COVID-19- ela ed mis- and
disin o ma ion, and p o ide explana ions o he limi ed scope o hei esponses.
Explo ing he unde - esea ched connec ion be ween he ope a ing p inciples o
social media pla o ms and hei limi ed measu es agains mis- and disin o ma ion,
we add ess a ele an esea ch gap in he ex an li e a u e on digi al pla o ms and
sel -go e nance, pa icula ly he ole o IT go e nance (ITG), p o iding he g ound
o ou a gumen agains an o e eliance on sel -go e nance. In ou quali a i e s udy
ha d aws on publicly a ailable documen s, we ind ha he sho comings o cu -
en esponses o mis- and disin o ma ion a e pa ly due o he complex na u e o
mis- and disin o ma ion, as well as he wide poli ical and socie al implica ions o
de e mining online con en ’s ac uali y. The co e p oblem, howe e , is g ounded in
he cu en o e eliance on sel -go e nance. We a gue o an enhanced dialogue and
collabo a ion be ween social media pla o ms and hei ele an s akeholde s, espe-
cially go e nmen s. We con ibu e o he g owing ITG li e a u e and deba e abou
pla o ms’ oles and esponsibili ies, suppo ing he in ensi ying calls o go e n-
men al egula ion.
Keywo ds COVID-19· Disin o ma ion· IT go e nance· Misin o ma ion· Sel -
go e nance· Social media pla o ms
1 In oduc ion
Digi al pla o ms assume inc easingly powe ul oles in socie y (Lindman e  al.,
2023). The ise o social media pla o ms as a sub ype o digi al pla o ms has
been accompanied by inc easingly c i ical accoun s o hei des uc i e po en ial
Ex ended au ho in o ma ion a ailable on he las page o he a icle
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L.Wa nke e al.
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(Cusumano e al., 2022), as he hea ed deba es in connec ion wi h Twi e ’s acquisi-
ion by Tech billionai e Elon Musk illus a e (BBC, 2022). The pla o m has since
been enamed “X”, howe e in his pape we will e e o i as Twi e .The eliance
on social media as younge gene a ions’ p ima y in o ma ion sou ce and he up ake
o mis- and disin o ma ion on hese pla o ms inc ease his h ea (Ma in, 2021,
p. 2; Reu e s Ins i u e o he S udy o Jou nalism, 2021a). This was pa icula ly
obse able du ing he Co id-19 pandemic, which has also been e e ed o as an in -
odemic, p omp ing schola ly calls o measu es agains bo h mis- and disin o ma ion
and hei unde lying causes (Ma in, 2020). The e m in odemic means “a lood o
in o ma ion on he Co id-19 pandemic”, which has been ueled by misin o ma ion
and disin o ma ion sp eading on social media (Wo ld Heal h O ganiza ion [WHO],
2021b).
How social media pla o ms manage and go e n mis- and disin o ma ion can be
unde s ood as a ma e o bo h e hics and go e nance. Recen esea ch has ad o-
ca ed o explo ing how In o ma ion Technology Go e nance (ITG) may be used o
p oac i ely add ess e hical issues ela ed o di e en kinds o in o ma ion echnol-
ogy (IT) (Wilkin & Chenhall, 2020). Wi h his a icle, we con ibu e o he g owing
ITG li e a u e by explo ing how he h ee mos ele an social media pla o ms, i.e.,
Facebook, YouTube, and Twi e , design hei sel -go e nance measu es o espond
o COVID-19- ela ed mis- and disin o ma ion and p o ide explana ions o he lim-
i ed scope o hese esponses. Sel -go e nance in his con ex is de ined as egula-
ions and guidelines ha a e issued by ei he a single company o a g oup o com-
panies (indus y sel -go e nance) and applied o hemsel es o manage and con ol
hei businesses (Cusumano e al., 2021). The case o COVID-19- ela ed mis- and
disin o ma ion on social media pla o ms is especially use ul o his s udy as i
has gained immense a en ion om a ious s akeholde s on a global scale. Fu he ,
i demons a ed he des uc i e po en ial o mis- and disin o ma ion sp eading on
social media. Roozenbeek e al., (2020, p. 12) ind ha a highe suscep ibili y o
misin o ma ion is di ec ly linked o people’s beha io s du ing he pandemic, esul -
ing in accine hesi ancy and less adhe ence o public heal h measu es. The e o e,
he COVID-19-pandemic p esen s a aluable empi ical con ex o unde s anding
social media pla o ms’ sel -go e nance mechanisms.
Co po a e go e nance as he s udy o how an o ganiza ion is go e ned and
how decisions a e made is a c i ical elemen in analyzing social media pla o ms’
esponses o mis- and disin o ma ion. ITG is desc ibed as “an in eg al pa o co -
po a e go e nance and add esses he de ini ion and implemen a ion” o h ee key
aspec s: go e nance s uc u es, p ocesses, and ela ional mechanisms, which enable
“bo h business and IT people o execu e hei esponsibili ies in suppo o business/
IT alignmen and he c ea ion o business alue om IT-enabled business in es -
men s” (Van G embe gen & De Haes, 2009, p. 3). We he e o e unde s and ITG as
a o m o sel -go e nance. IT go e nance s uc u es e e o “o ganiza ional uni s
and oles esponsible o making IT decisions and o enabling con ac s be ween
business and IT managemen (decision-making) unc ions” (Van G embe gen & De
Haes, 2009, p. 21). ITG p ocesses a e designed o ensu e he alignmen o daily
business ou ines o co po a e policies and p o ide eedback h ough “ he o mali-
za ion and ins i u ionaliza ion o s a egic IT decision-making o IT moni o ing
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Social media pla o ms’ esponses oCOVID‑19‑ ela ed mis‑…
p ocedu es” (Van G embe gen & De Haes, 2009, p. 22). Las ly, ela ional mech-
anisms a e announcemen s, channels, and educa ional e o s ha a e designed
h ough pa icipa ion and collabo a ion be ween he di e en co po a e le els con-
sis ing o execu i es as well as business and IT manage s. The la e is especially
impo an o business and IT alignmen (Van G embe gen & De Haes, 2009, p. 22).
We con ibu e o ex an ITG esea ch by explo ing go e nance challenges linked
o social media pla o ms as pa icula ly ele an and powe ul ac o s in he con-
ex o COVID-19- ela ed mis- and disin o ma ion. We speci ically ocus on social
media pla o ms which “enable people […] o make connec ions by sha ing exp es-
si e and communica i e con en , building p o essional ca ee s, and enjoying online
social li es” ( an Dijck, 2013, p. 4). Globally, he e a e 4.8 billion ac i e social
media use s (Da aRepo al e al., 2023) wi h an a e age daily use o 2 h and 22
min (Buchholz, 2022). The e o e, social media pla o ms a e a la ge pa o mos
people’s li es and, hence, may signi ican ly impac hem and socie y mo e gene -
ally. A a he new and unin en ional unc ion o social media pla o ms is ga he ing
in o ma ion and news. A s udy by he Reu e s Ins i u e o he S udy o Jou nalism
(2021a) showed ha 67% o esponden s unde he age o 25 use social media as a
sou ce o in o ma ion. A he same ime, elying on social media as he main in o -
ma ion sou ce esul s in mo e suscep ibili y o misin o ma ion (Allco & Gen zkow,
2017, p.17).
Agains his backg ound, misin o ma ion and disin o ma ion ha e become pa -
icula ly salien and consequen ial. Vosoughi e al., (2018, p.1146) de ine misin-
o ma ion as “in o ma ion ha is inaccu a e o misleading”. The deg ee o in en-
ion di e en ia es misin o ma ion om disin o ma ion. While misin o ma ion is
unin en ional, disin o ma ion sp eads alse s o ies delibe a ely (Geeng e al., 2020,
p.1). The COVID-19 pandemic has no been he i s e en ha led o an inc easing
sp ead o misin o ma ion and disin o ma ion on social media pla o ms. The 2016
U.S. elec ions a e a a he p ominen example unde lining he socie al and poli i-
cal ele ance o mis- and disin o ma ion on social media pla o ms (Allco e al.,
2019).
The ex en o which alse in o ma ion is sp ead delibe a ely is ha d o assess. The
h ee social media pla o ms we s udy co espondingly seem o p e e o speak o
misin o ma ion when desc ibing hei measu es. Howe e , mos phenomena hey
e e o in his con ex a e, in ac , be e desc ibed as disin o ma ion, o exam-
ple, an i- accina ion conspi acy heo ies. E ec i ely coun e ing disin o ma ion on
social media pla o ms has become pa icula ly ele an in he ongoing COVID-19
pandemic. Disin o ma ion ha sp eads quickly and widely unde mines con idence
in public heal h measu ees and hus nega i ely impac s c isis managemen (Algan
e al., 2022). Lack o us in go e nmen s and limi ed scien i ic knowledge con ib-
u e o he consump ion and sp ead o misin o ma ion and disin o ma ion on social
media (Chowdhu y e  al., 2021). This is pa icula ly p oblema ic as an i- accine
con en and co esponding disin o ma ion e o s ha e been ound o di ec ly con-
ibu e o accina ion e usal (Mu ic e al., 2021), hus coun e ac ing public heal h
e o s. Ou main a gumen , and a he same ime ou cen al con ibu ion, is ha
he sp ead o such ha m ul in o ma ion is no acciden al, bu a he pa o he un-
damen al design o social media pla o ms. I can hus be a gued o be g ounded
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L.Wa nke e al.
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in hei basic ope a ing p inciples and p ac ices o alue c ea ion. To unde s and
how a pla o m’s alue is c ea ed, i is essen ial o unde s and he basic s uc u e o
he unde lying business model. Van Dijck e al. (2018, p.10) poin ou ha digi al
pla o ms mone ize a en ion, da a, and use alua ion, which a guably a ec s hei
p ocesses, go e nance s uc u es and ela ional mechanisms, as well as measu es o
mode a e and manage con en . Zubo (2015, 2019, 2022) a gues ha his is p ob-
lema ic because use s o social media pla o ms a e ha dly awa e o hei ole, hus
c ea ing a “beha io al su plus” ha , in u n, c ea es e enue o he social media
pla o ms, incen i izing he la e o manipula e use s’ online beha io so as o c e-
a e u he e enue.
The kind o in o ma ion a use sees while using social media is highly de e -
mined by he pla o m’s algo i hms. Use s can become apped in il e bubbles as
sea ch esul s a e pe sonalized and p eselec ed based on pe sonal cha ac e is ics
such as loca ion o p e ious sea ches (Kompe enzzen um Ö en liche IT, 2016,
p.99). Because algo i hms a e ained o p omo e p o oking, sensa ional con en
ha use s engage wi h, and misin o ma ion i s many o hese c i e ia, hey a e o en
sp ead h ough he pla o ms’ algo i hms (A aaz, 2020; Culli o d, 2020; Eisens a ,
2021; Robe s, 2020). Consequen ly, his spa ks a deba e conce ning he socie al
and poli ical oles and esponsibili ies o social media pla o ms. Recen a emp s o
egula e social media pla o ms mo e s ic ly such as he Digi al Se ices Ac ha e
been unsuccess ul (Tu illazzi e al., 2023), and, hus, in he absence o su icien
go e nmen egula ion, an (o e ) eliance on sel -go e nance by social media pla -
o ms hemsel es is obse ed. Cusumano e al., (2021, p. 1273 .) a gue ha sel - eg-
ula o y esponses o many pla o ms we e adop ed oo la e and emain insu icien
o add ess cu en challenges. Empi ically explo ing he unde - esea ched connec-
ion be ween go e nance p inciples and measu es agains mis- and disin o ma ion,
we hus ask: How do social media pla o ms design hei (IT) sel -go e nance as a
esponse o COVID-19- ela ed misin o ma ion and disin o ma ion?
To answe his ques ion, his a icle p oceeds as ollows. We discuss some cen al
ope a ing p inciples o social media pla o ms, ITG mechanisms, hei in e ac ion
and las ly add ess he cu en o e eliance on sel -go e nance in con as o go e n-
men egula ion. In he subsequen me hods sec ion, we jus i y ou case selec ion
and p o ide mo e g anula de ails on he empi ical con ex o ou s udy. We hen
p esen ou co e indings ega ding he na u e and scope o s a egic esponses o
h ee social media pla o ms o in e es . We hen discuss ou indings, highligh ing
po en ial pa hways owa ds ebalancing olun a y ac ion in e ms o IT sel -go e n-
ance and go e nmen egula ion. Ou conclusion con ains he mos ele an con i-
bu ions and add esses some o he limi a ions o his s udy.
2 In e disciplina y li e a u e e iew
In he ollowing, we desc ibe he mos ele an ea u es o social media pla o ms
ha lead o go e nance p oblems in gene al and mis- o disin o ma ion in pa icula ,
bo h o which p esen impo an and c i ical issues o be add essed h ough e ec-
i e sel -go e nance in gene al and ITG in pa icula . I is hus impo an o i s

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Social media pla o ms’ esponses oCOVID‑19‑ ela ed mis‑…
unde s and he basic ope a ing p inciples o social media pla o ms and how hey
gene a e go e nance p oblems be o e cla i ying he ela ionship be ween sel -go -
e nance and go e nmen egula ion.
2.1 Ope a ing p inciples o social media pla o ms asa acili a o o mis‑
anddisin o ma ion
Digi al pla o ms c ea e alue h ough ne wo k e ec s, which acco ding o Pa ke
e al., (2016, p. 17) “ e e s o he impac ha he numbe o use s o a pla o m has
on he alue c ea ed o each use ”. Acco ding o S nicek (2017, p. 256), ne wo k
e ec s a e possibly he mos alue-de ining ea u e o a pla o m ha d aw in mo e
and mo e use s and e en ually lead o a monopoly. Algo i hms, algo i hmic deci-
sion-making, and he co esponding ne wo k e ec s a e cen al o he unc ioning o
digi al pla o ms in gene al and social media pla o ms in pa icula (Za sky, 2016).
In he con ex o social media pla o ms, hey (co-)de e mine wha con en use s see
and engage wi h.
S nicek (2017, p.254) a gues ha da a a e cen al o social media pla o ms and
he main sou ce o hei economic and poli ical powe . Th ough use s’ in o ma ion,
pho os, and ac i i ies, social media pla o ms a e p o ided wi h mo e and mo e da a,
which eaches hei sel -lea ning so wa e o be e unde s and and p edic use s’
ac ions (Royakke s e al., 2018, p.139). The e o e, he cos o hei powe is he
p i acy o use s. Howe e , in con as o o he challenging a eas o digi aliza ion,
da a p o ec ion and p i acy a e ecei ing he mos legal a en ion and supe ision,
o example, p o ided by he Eu opean Da a P o ec ion Regula ion. S ill, c i ics
doub he e ec i eness and sui abili y o hese egula ions. Al hough he e a e some
laws in place al eady, hey do no necessa ily conside he in e wined ela ionships
be ween da a, use s, algo i hms, and o he ac o s ha con ibu e o he unc ioning
o pla o ms (Eu opean Commission, 2022a).
Pe sonaliza ion, as one o he main ea u es de e mining why use s a e a ac ed
and loyal o a pa icula pla o m ( an Dijck e al., 2018, p.42), c ea es a lock-in
e ec . The algo i hms go e ning his p ocess a e kep sec e as accu a e p edic-
ions gene a e a compe i i e ad an age. The algo i hms on which pe sonaliza ion is
based esul in sea ch engines being biased. Pa ise (2011, p.9) e e s o his as il-
e bubbles, “unique uni e ses o in o ma ion” c ea ed by enginee s ha a ec how
ideas and in o ma ion a e pe cei ed. Th ough he c ea ion o indi idual online uni-
e ses, he pe sonaliza ion mo emen is also h ea ening democ acy (Zubo , 2022).
Democ acy elies on aking on di e en iewpoin s and sha ed ac s, which a e
inc easingly unde mined by indi iduals’ pe sonalized en i onmen s online. Fu he ,
i limi s one’s au onomy and se e ely impac s meaning ul decisions as he possible
op ions p esen ed we e p eselec ed by algo i hms (Pa ise , 2011, p.16).
Simila ly, echo chambe s a e an inc easingly cen al issue in he sp ead o misin-
o ma ion and disin o ma ion on he In e ne . Echo chambe s e e o communi ies,
especially on social media pla o ms, ha sha e he same wo ld iew (Colleoni e al.,
2014, p.319). Es ablished iews a e ein o ced wi hin hese echo chambe s, and
membe s a e a ely exposed o al e na i e iews and opinions (Lü jen, 2016, p.17).
1084
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Dis- and misin o ma ion in line wi h a ce ain echo chambe ’s iew and ideology
a e di used mo e quickly h ough he echo chambe (Tö nbe g, 2018). In con as
o il e bubbles con olled by algo i hms, echo chambe s de elop h ough pe sonal
ac ion. Mo eo e , social media pla o ms consciously and by design encou age p e-
dominan ly nega i e emo ional con en , e.g., exp essions o ea and ange (S eine ,
2020).
In sum, il e bubbles and echo chambe s a e bes unde s ood as a di ec esul
o a social media pla o m’s basic ope a ing p inciples and o m a cen al pa o
hei alue c ea ion. A he same ime, go e nance is cos ly, and implemen ing go -
e nance measu es o en c ea es ensions be ween economic alue c ea ion and go -
e nance cos s (Hube e al., 2017). The e o e, implemen ing and po en ially ex end-
ing go e nance ha would, o example, a ge il e bubbles and echo chambe s on
social media pla o ms, migh be seen as a di ec h ea o he business models o
la ge social media pla o ms elying on ne wo k e ec s.
2.2 IT go e nance
Mis- and disin o ma ion, we a gue, cons i u e a socie al h ea ha is acili a ed
h ough social media pla o ms and ein o ced h ough hei basic ope a ing, busi-
ness model-in o ming p inciples. This is enabled h ough se e al ci cums ances.
Acco ding o Ma in (2021), sha ing is a spli -second decision ega dless o i s u h
con en . Fu he , Geeng e al. (2020) ind ha mos use s do no in es iga e he con-
en hey a e sha ing. This con ibu es o alse in o ma ion sp eading as e and a -
he on social media han he u h (Vosoughi e al., 2018, p.1149) and shapes use s’
opinions. Howe e , he sp ead o misin o ma ion is no jus p omo ed by use s bu
also by bo s and algo i hms. This is whe e ITG, as discussed ea lie , comes in o play
due o he la ge ole IT plays in go e ning and shaping social media pla o ms.
As b ie ly explained in he in oduc ion, ITG b oadly e e s o go e nance s uc-
u es, p ocesses, and ela ional mechanisms wi hin he espec i e o ganiza ion (Van
G embe gen & De Haes, 2009). The main ask o ITG is o e ec i ely and e icien ly
enable he o ganiza ion o c ea e business alue, o mi iga e isks associa ed wi h IT,
and o acili a e he alignmen be ween co po a e ision, managemen p ac ices, and
he IT in as uc u e (Bowen e al., 2007). Mos ITG esea ch ocuses on he ole o
ITG o business and IT alignmen and he esul ing pe o mance e ec s (e.g., De
Haes & Van G embe gen, 2017).
How IT Go e nance mechanisms a e used in an o ganiza ion, among o he hings,
depends on hei inhe en dependence on IT. Based on Nolan and McFa lan (2005),
Hé oux and Fo in (2014) ca ego ize an o ganiza ion’s dependence on IT by means
o ou IT modes. The IT modes ange om highly de ensi e, somewha o ensi e,
mode a ely o ensi e o highly o ensi e. A ibu es de e mining he IT mode a e IT
in ensi y as well as size and decen aliza ion o he IT unc ion. We a gue ha due o
hei business model and as bo n digi als (Monaghan e al., 2020), social media pla -
o ms can be ca ego ized as highly o ensi e wi h high IT in ensi y, a la ge IT unc-
ion, and a low-mode a e decen aliza ion o hei IT unc ion. In highly o ensi e
IT modes, ITG p ocesses and ela ional capabili ies a e used o a mode a e o high
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Social media pla o ms’ esponses oCOVID‑19‑ ela ed mis‑…
deg ee, whe eas ITG s uc u es a e only used o a low o mode a e deg ee (Hé oux
& Fo in, 2014, p. 161). To gain a be e unde s anding o ITG mechanisms, Hé oux
and Fo in (2014) use se e al i ems o measu e each cons uc in hei su ey. ITG
s uc u es a e, o example, speci ic IT commi ees o secu i y, p ojec s, o a chi ec-
u e, wi h he boa d o di ec o s ha ing bo h expe ise o IT isks and managemen
unc ions esponsible o IT secu i y, isks, and compliance. This unde s anding
is in line wi h Al emimi and Zaka ia’s (2015) iden i ied d i e s o ITG s uc u es,
which a e au ho i y and membe ship as well as coo dina ion mechanisms, demon-
s a ing ha ITG s uc u es de e mine esponsibili y and decision-making- unc ions.
Hé oux and Fo in (2014) u he analyze ITG p ocesses, exp essed h ough o mal
p ocesses ega ding IT s a egy, and wo k wi h ex e nal agencies o conduc IT secu-
i y audi s. D i e s o ITG p ocesses a e pe o mance moni o ing and he alignmen
o IT decisions wi h key business, hus add essing co po a e s a egy (Al emimi
& Zaka ia, 2015). Las ly, ITG ela ional capabili ies en ail senio execu i es being
in ol ed in shaping a ision and IT’s ole in he o ganiza ion as well as he imple-
men a ion o he ision h oughou he o ganiza ion (Hé oux & Fo in, 2014). This
is ela ed o a numbe o d i e s such as leade ship, skills, collabo a i e ela ion-
ships, as well as ole, esponsibili y, and commi men and hus leads o es ablish-
ing commi men and suppo bo h a he op managemen le els and h oughou he
whole o ganiza ion (Al emimi & Zaka ia, 2015).
2.3 ITG andsocial media pla o ms’ esponses omis‑ anddisin o ma ion
The e a e di e en app oaches o p inciples guiding sel -go e nance e o s o social
media pla o ms. Ma in (2021), o example, es ablished a hie a chy o no ms o
ele ance o social media pla o ms ha also a ec he sp ead o (mis-)in o ma ion.
The i s laye consis s o legal no ms. These a e kep o a minimum by he pla o ms
and communica ed h ough e ms and condi ions, o en conce ning illegal ac i i ies,
including ha e speech and pe sonal a acks. The second laye conce ns me a-no ms
o sociali y ha aim o p omo e he u he g ow h o he ne wo k wi hin he law.
Las ly, he hi d laye is he co e laye conce ning local and unp edic able no ms.
These depend on he g oup le el and can apply o a communi y wi hin a pa icu-
la social media pla o m and, he e o e, di e ac oss di e en communi ies using
he same pla o m. Social media pla o ms usually do no in e ene o es ablish any
es ic ions o his le el as long as hese communi y no ms ollow he law and con-
ibu e o expanding he ne wo k (Ma in, 2021). This hie a chy o no ms add esses
he equi emen o IT decisions being aligned wi h he key business objec i es and
p inciples cons i u ing ITG p ocesses (Al emimi & Zaka ia, 2015).
Acco ding o Ma in (2021), measu es o igh he sp ead o mis- o disin o ma-
ion en ail bo h elemen s o human supe ision and algo i hms. The e a e nume -
ous app oaches o limi ing mis- o disin o ma ion on social media pla o ms.
Laze e al., (2018, p.1095) dis inguish be ween wo ypes o in e en ions. Fi s ,
app oaches ha empowe use s o e alua e he encoun e ed in o ma ion and make
in o med decisions abou hei u h con en and whe he o no o sha e i . Sec-
ond, in e en ion app oaches ha in ol e s uc u al changes o p e en use s om
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coming in o con ac wi h disin o ma ion in he i s place. In e en ion app oaches
a e mos ly implemen ed olun a ily by social media pla o ms as a key sel -go e n-
ing mechanism in hei igh agains misin o ma ion and disin o ma ion, o d i en
by go e nmen egula ion. Since disin o ma ion can also be conside ed a cen al
pa o a social media pla o m’s business model, T i in-Ulb ich e al., (2021, p.15)
poin ou ha pla o ms’ p io i y would be o a oid o ci cum en go e nmen al eg-
ula ions. Fo example, collabo a ion wi h ac -checke s is p omo ed.
Laze e al., (2018, p.1096) sugges al e ing he algo i hms o emphasize high-
quali y in o ma ion and p o ide in o ma ion ega ding he sou ce’s quali y. Fu he -
mo e, he pe sonaliza ion o poli ical in o ma ion should be educed. These sel -
go e nance mechanisms could hus po en ially majo ly in e e e wi h he pla o ms’
ope a ing p inciples. Geeng e al., (2020, p.2) analyze Facebook and Twi e and
epo ha bo h pla o ms emo e inau hen ic and manipula i e accoun s. Mo eo-
e , use s can manually lag pos s, o hese may be au oma ically de ec ed and hen
demo ed. Las ly, Facebook p o ides mo e in o ma ion o use s abou an a icle’s
sou ce. Be o e sha ing in o ma ion ha is known o be alse, he pla o m wa ns he
use and o e s ela ed ac -checked a icles (Geeng e al., 2020). Pennycook e al.
(2020b) ound ha nudges, such as accu acy eminde s, p omo e mo e hough ul
sha ing beha io , which would bene i he igh agains misin o ma ion ha is o en
sha ed unin en ionally. Especially when i comes o changing pla o m algo i hms
o adequa ely add ess misin o ma ion and disin o ma ion, ITG p ocesses a e needed
ha a e pe o mance moni o ing o ien ed, ake in o accoun cu en de elopmen s,
and can be adap ed o s a egic changes a sho no ice. (Al emimi & Zaka ia, 2015).
A mechanism a ailable on almos e e y social media pla o m is lagging, some-
imes e e ed o as epo ing. This p ac ice is de ined by C aw o d and Gillespie
(2016, p.411) as “ epo ing o ensi e con en o a social media pla o m”. In his
sense, he use s a e engaged in shaping he pla o m’s con en and, in a way, com-
muni y alues. As lagging is o en jus he i s s ep in po en ially emo ing con-
en om he pla o m, his p ac ice adds legi imiza ion o he pla o m’s inal deci-
sion (C aw o d &Gillespie, 2016, p.412). Howe e , he e a e also downsides o he
p ac ice o lagging. One o he g ea es challenges o his mechanism is ha use s
may abuse i . Fo example, use s may lag con en as a joke because o an exis ing
eud o compe i ion wi h o he c ea o s, o may e en bully and ha ass c ea o s. Due
o he limi ed communica ion and in e ac ion, he di e ence is almos impossible
o de ec o he pla o ms, which may lea e he mechanism in aluable (C aw o d
&Gillespie, 2016, p.420). Mo eo e , Pennycook e al. (2020a) highligh ha he
app oach may lead o an Implied T u h E ec . This s a es ha con en ha is no
labeled is g an ed highe c edibili y and is assumed o be accu a e, hus c ea ing a
alse sense o secu i y.
Ano he op ion is he olun a y collabo a ion be ween go e nmen s and social
media pla o ms. Fo example, in he UK, he na ional heal h se ice (NHS) wo ked
oge he wi h social media pla o ms o p omo e accu a e COVID-19- ela ed in o -
ma ion and, a he same ime, igh he sp ead o misin o ma ion. Measu es included,
among o he s, he e i ica ion o go e nmen al accoun s o es ablish us ed sou ces,
di ec links, o easy access o accu a e in o ma ion p o ided by he NHS o COVID-
19- ela ed sea ches and he exclusion o emo al o iden i ied alse in o ma ion and
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Social media pla o ms’ esponses oCOVID‑19‑ ela ed mis‑…
Table 3 (con inued)
Fi s o de codes Second o de hemes Agg ega e dimensions
C oss-sec o collabo a ion Pa ne ships
(Heal h) Expe s
Media indus y
Indus y pee s
Global and na ional heal h and go e nmen al o ganiza ions
Fac -checke s
O ganiza ions
Na ional Adap a ion
Communi y guidelines Communi y Guidelines
App o al in g oups by admins Consequences o iola ing use s
Lock / emo e accoun
S ike sys em

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Table 4 Illus a i e examples o he da a analysis
Sou ce Quo e Fi s o de code Second o de heme
Rosen (2020) [Facebook] “Du ing he mon h o Ap il, we pu wa ning labels on abou 50
million pieces o con en ela ed o COVID-19 on Facebook,
based on a ound 7500 a icles by ou independen ac -checking
pa ne s.”
Labeling Empowe ing use in e en ion
Fac -checke s Pa ne ships
Twi e (2021a) “Ou sys ems lea n om pas decisions by ou e iew eams,
so o e ime, he echnology is able o help us ank con en o
challenge accoun s au oma ically. Fo con en ha equi es addi-
ional con ex , such as misleading in o ma ion a ound COVID-
19, ou eams will con inue o e iew hose epo s manually.”
Au oma ed lagging Algo i hmic sc eening
Manual e iew Manual sc eening
Twi e Sa e y (2020) “S a ing in ea ly 2021, we may label o place a wa ning on
Twee s ha ad ance unsubs an ia ed umo s, dispu ed claims, as
well as incomple e o ou -o -con ex in o ma ion abou accines.
Twee s ha a e labeled unde his expanded guidance may link
o au ho i a i e public heal h in o ma ion o he Twi e Rules
o p o ide people wi h addi ional con ex and au ho i a i e in o -
ma ion abou COVID-19.”
Labeling Empowe ing use in e en ion
Jin (2020) [Facebook] “To u he limi he sp ead o misin o ma ion, his week we a e
launching a dedica ed sec ion o he COVID-19 In o ma ion
Cen e called Fac s abou COVID-19. I will de-bunk common
my hs ha ha e been iden i ied by he Wo ld Heal h O ganiza-
ion such as d inking bleach will p e en he co ona i us o ha
aking hyd oxychlo oquine can p e en COVID-19.”
Cen al in o ma ion cen e s Empowe ing use in e en ion
YouTube (2021d) “Fo con en whe e accu acy and au ho i a i eness a e key,
including news, poli ics, medical, and scien i ic in o ma ion, we
use machine lea ning sys ems ha p io i ize in o ma ion om
au ho i a i e sou ces in sea ch esul s and ecommenda ions.”
Machine lea ning Algo i hmic Sc eening
P omo ing us ed sou ces and in o ma ion Empowe ing use in e en ion
Imp o ing sea ch esul s
Highe exposu e o us ed con en /
imp o e ecommenda ion and anking
S uc u al in e en ion
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Social media pla o ms’ esponses oCOVID‑19‑ ela ed mis‑…
Table 4 (con inued)
Sou ce Quo e Fi s o de code Second o de heme
Twi e Sa e y (2020) “S a ing nex week, we will p io i ize he emo al o he mos
ha m ul misleading in o ma ion, and du ing he coming weeks,
begin o label Twee s ha con ain po en ially misleading in o -
ma ion abou he accines.”
Label Empowe ing use in e en ion
Remo e con en S uc u al in e en ion
Twi e Sa e y (2021) “The Q&A ea u ed D . An hony Fauci, US P esiden Biden’s
chie medical ad iso , and o he membe s o he Whi e House
COVID-19 esponse eam. In India, we wo ked wi h he Minis-
y o Heal h o o ganize Vaccine Va ha, a weekly expe alk
hos ed on Twi e ha enables accine expe s o answe ci izen
ques ions.”
P omo ing us ed sou ces and in o ma ion Empowe ing use in e en ion
(Heal h) expe s Pa ne ships
Na ional adap a ion
YouTube (2021a) “No e: YouTube’s policies on COVID-19 a e subjec o change in
esponse o changes o global o local heal h au ho i ies’ guid-
ance on he i us.”
Communi y guidelines
Rosen (2020) [Facebook] “We a e also equi ing some admins o g oups wi h admins o
membe s who ha e iola ed ou COVID-19 policies o empo-
a ily app o e all pos s wi hin hei g oup.”
App o al in g oups by admins Consequences o use s
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App oaches and ini ia i es we e mixed, and he da a analysis iden i ied common
hemes ac oss all h ee pla o ms. Mos analyzed documen s speci ically add ess
COVID-19 esponses. In he ollowing indings sec ion, he iden i ied mechanisms
add essing mis- and disin o ma ion on social media pla o ms a e p esen ed, ca -
ego ized acco ding o he iden i ied da a s uc u e. Unde s anding and ca ego izing
hese esponses, al hough igge ed by he speci ic e en o he COVID-19 pan-
demic, p omises o p o ide he empi ical basis o being able o assess u u e ITG
esponses o simila la ge-scale e en s wi h conside able socie al impac .
4.1 Sc eening me hods
Be o e con en can be emo ed o labeled, i needs o be de ec ed and e iewed. Fo
ha pu pose, social media pla o ms apply se e al di e en sc eening me hods o
iden i y and e alua e con en . Th ee sc eening me hods can be dis inguished, i.e.,
algo i hmic sc eening, manual sc eening, and a mixed sc eening app oach. Algo i h-
mic sc eening includes he use o algo i hms o de ec alse o misleading con en .
All h ee pla o ms apply his me hod. The pla o ms claim a high success a e o
algo i hms de ec ing con en au oma ically a he han i being epo ed by use s o
h ough manual sc eening (Facebook, 2021g).
The pla o ms also highligh he ad an ages o algo i hmic sc eening and he
a eas in which i is pa icula ly use ul. In a epo , YouTube (2021g) poin s ou ha
au oma ic de ec ion allows o as e and mo e p ecise ac ion when en o cing i s pol-
icies. Fu he , hei machine lea ning ools a e imp o ing in di e en languages, and
ac -checking agencies wo k in mo e han 60 languages (Twi e Sa e y, 2021).
The sc eening p ocess can be di ided in o wo s eps. Fi s ly, con en ha may
be iola ing he pla o m’s policies needs o be de ec ed. Secondly, i is e iewed
and e alua ed be o e deciding whe he i iola es policies and which in e en ion
app oach should be applied. These wo s eps may be ca ied ou by ei he algo i h-
mic o manual sc eening o a combina ion he eo . Fo example, Facebook applies
a i icial in elligence (AI) o emo e COVID-19- ela ed misin o ma ion a e he
ques ionable con en has been lagged h ough manual sc eening (Rosen, 2021).
A key cha ac e is ic o machine lea ning is ha i needs o be ained by man-
ual inpu s. Manual sc eening includes he sc eening by pla o m employees as well
as use epo ing. This mechanism is s ill hea ily applied by all pla o ms. Besides
elying on hei own pe sonnel ha manually sc eens con en , du ing he COVID-19
pandemic, he social media pla o ms ex ensi ely collabo a ed wi h pa ne s such as
heal h expe s and (go e nmen al) heal h o ganiza ions. The mechanism is no jus
used in he con ex o misin o ma ion, bu in all iola ions o he pla o ms’ com-
muni y guidelines and policies (YouTube, 2019). In e es ingly, Twi e is he only
pla o m ha does no communica e abou use epo ing, bu a he communica es
ha i only elies on sc eening h ough us ed pa ne s like public heal h au ho i-
ies, NGOs, o go e nmen s (Twi e , 2021b). Sec ion4.3 con ains mo e indings
ega ding pa ne ships ha we e implemen ed as a esponse o COVID-19- ela ed
mis- and disin o ma ion.
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Acco ding o YouTube, algo i hmic sc eening is he mos impo an and success-
ul me hod. In second and hi d place a e use epo ing and de ec ion h ough he
T us ed Flagge P og am. Only a small ac ion o he emo ed ideos is de ec ed
by NGOs and go e nmen agencies (YouTube, 2021e). A e ques ionable con en
is lagged, i may be e iewed h ough manual sc eening as well (YouTube, 2021 ).
Facebook also coope a es wi h ac -checke s o make quali ied decisions on he
accu a eness o COVID-19- ela ed con en (Rosen, 2021). Al hough machine lea n-
ing p ocesses a e applied widely ac oss he pla o m, YouTube (2019) acknowledges
ha “human expe ise is s ill a c i ical componen o [ hei ] en o cemen e o s”.
Las ly, a mixed app oach combining bo h algo i hmic and manual sc eening can
be ound. This may e e o ci cums ances whe e algo i hmic sc eening is no ye
ad anced enough so ha , in consequence, manual in ol emen is s ill equi ed. Fu -
he , a combined app oach may be applied a e con en is lagged au oma ically.
When a decision on u he ac ions canno be eached by he algo i hm, manual
sc eening is equi ed. A Facebook, a mixed app oach allows machine lea ning ools
o e ol e and be ained o be mo e e ec i e and e icien (Rosen, 2021). Twi e
equally elies on a mixed me hods app oach and holds ha accoun s will no pe -
manen ly be suspended solely based on au oma ed en o cemen sys ems, bu only
a e human e iew (Twi e , 2021a). A e sc eening con en and po en ially iden-
i ying misleading in o ma ion, in e en ion app oaches a e applied, which will be
add essed in he ollowing sec ion.
4.2 In e en ion app oaches
Rega ding he ques ion how mis- and disin o ma ion is deal wi h, wo ypes o
in e en ion app oaches o sel -go e nance can be dis inguished, which ha e also
been in oduced by Laze e al., (2018, p.1095). Pla o ms choose ei he an empow-
e ing use in e en ion app oach o a s uc u al in e en ion app oach. Empowe -
ing use s e e s o p o iding ools o suppo use s in making in o med decisions.
Fo example, a ool o en used by social media pla o ms is labeling. Thus, con en
ha is known o include alse in o ma ion is no emo ed, ins ead a disclaime is
added. Labels a e applied ei he as an explici wa ning o by p o iding links o addi-
ional in o ma ion o o e con ex o he ques ionable con en . By p o iding eliable
sou ces, he use s a e suppo ed in in o ming hemsel es abou COVID-19 (Twi e
Sa e y, 2020).
This app oach is applied by all h ee pla o ms and o en includes links o
au ho i a i e sou ces and hi d-pa y si es since a cen al pa o he empowe ing
use in e en ion is o p omo e us ed sou ces and in o ma ion. In his ega d,
pla o ms a e also wo king on imp o ing sea ch esul s o use s who use social
media pla o ms o ind c edible in o ma ion abou COVID-19 (Twi e , 2021a).
In his con ex , Facebook e en c ea ed a specialized in o ma ion cen e conce n-
ing COVID-19, which ea u es eal- ime upda es om o ganiza ions such as
he WHO (Clegg, 2020). The in o ma ion cen e hus add esses a ious aspec s
a ound COVID-19 and collec s all ele an in o ma ion in one place o Face-
book’s use s. I also aims o educa e use s o he globally p ac iced physical and
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social dis ancing app oaches, guide people wi h a po en ial in ec ion, and, las ly,
p o ide links o ele an heal h au ho i ies and o ganiza ions (Facebook, 2021e).
The in o ma ion cen e is con inuously upda ed and ex ended, now also including
a sec ion add essing misin o ma ion. Twi e c ea ed a compa able cen al place
o collec in o ma ion ega ding COVID-19. On he pla o m, i is e e ed o as
he COVID-19 E en s page and “is a ailable a he op o he Home imeline o
e e yone in 30 + coun ies” (Twi e , 2021a).
O e all, all go e nance mechanisms pu sue he aim o empowe use s o make
hei own decisions based on eliable in o ma ion. A common concep o all
h ee pla o ms was ha empowe ing use in e en ion app oaches aim o p omo e
in o med decision-making (Facebook, 2021g). Facebook is also p omo ing he
de elopmen and imp o emen o use s’ news li e acy, which is an impo an skill in
he igh agains mis- and disin o ma ion in he long e m.
Las ly, he pla o ms may send ou messages and ale s o use s. In pa icula ,
Facebook sends messages o use s who ha e in e ac ed wi h con en in he pas ,
which since has been decla ed o include mis- and disin o ma ion (Rosen, 2020).
Rega ding s uc u al in e en ion, wo app oaches a e mos ly applied, namely
emo ing con en o educing he isibili y o con en . Facebook clea ly s a es wha
he condi ions a e o ei he app oach o be applied. Facebook emo es misin o -
ma ion ha is a po en ial h ea o physical in eg i y. Wi h his s ep, he pla o m
elies on ex e nal heal h expe s such as he WHO. Only con en which p omo es
debunked in o ma ion is emo ed (Facebook, 2021b). On YouTube, con en ha is
no an imminen h ea is no emo ed, bu a he he isibili y is dec eased o limi
i s sp ead (YouTube, 2021b).
This app oach is o en combined wi h labeling, an empowe ing use in e en ion
ool. Con en ha does no clea ly con adic he pla o m’s guidelines bu may be
misleading o alse is labeled acco dingly, o addi ional con ex ual in o ma ion is
p o ided (Twi e , 2021a). In combina ion wi h he p o ision o con ex and au ho i-
a i e sou ces on ques ionable con en , he pla o ms also pu sue an app oach whe e
us ed con en is gi en highe exposu e and is p omo ed mo e h ough he pla -
o m’s ecommenda ion o anking sys ems (YouTube, 2021d).
By down anking misin o ma ion and highligh ing us ed con en , he pla o ms
y o os e an en i onmen whe e use s encoun e less mis- and disin o ma ion
and a e p esen ed wi h eliable in o ma ion ega ding COVID-19. In addi ion, ake
accoun s ha only pu sue sp eading disin o ma ion a e being a ge ed and emo ed
(Mosse i, 2017). This is also pa icula ly pu sued by es ic ing use s’ engagemen
op ions wi h con en ha is misleading bu no emo able. Fo example, Twi e
(2021b) disabled engagemen unc ions while con en is being e iewed.
The pla o ms ac i ely pu sue a combina ion o hese wo in e en ion app oaches
and hei di e en ools. This shows ha , on one hand, machine lea ning mecha-
nisms can be applied o s op misin o ma ion om sp eading and o educe he expo-
su e o use s o misin o ma ion. Ne e heless, on he o he hand, he social media
pla o ms acknowledge ha i is also impo an o educa e use s and imp o e hei
news li e acy skills in o de o hem o make in o med decisions. In he long un,
his migh also imp o e he pla o m’s p oblem o being pollu ed by mis-and dis-
in o ma ion. Al hough bo h app oaches a e ac i ely pu sued and combined by he

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Social media pla o ms’ esponses oCOVID‑19‑ ela ed mis‑…
pla o ms, ou analysis showed ha s uc u al in e en ion is pu sued much less e-
quen ly han empowe ing use in e en ion.
4.3 Pa ne ships
In many o hei in e en ion app oaches and se e al sc eening me hods, he pla -
o ms coope a e wi h ex e nal pa ne s. The mos men ioned o m o pa ne ing is
wi h heal h o ganiza ions o heal h expe s. This o en occu s in combina ion wi h
“p omo ing us ed sou ces and in o ma ion” and “labeling”, which a e bo h empow-
e ing use in e en ions.
All pla o ms pu sue he aim o p o ide use s wi h au ho i a i e in o ma ion. Fo
ha pu pose, he pla o ms ely on public heal h expe s, public heal h o ganiza-
ions, as well as on go e nmen s. While he mos men ioned global heal h o ganiza-
ion is he WHO, a ocus is se on na ional adap a ion as well. The pla o ms also
p o ide links o na ional heal h o ganiza ions, o en alongside global in o ma ion
om he WHO, and adap hei mechanisms o local ci cums ances (Twi e , 2021a).
The con ibu ion o he WHO includes he p o ision o links o hei websi e o
p o ide a us ed and eliable sou ce o use s whe e hey could ind u he in o ma-
ion abou he i us wi hou he h ea o encoun e ing mis- o disin o ma ion. Fu -
he , he WHO also publishes common COVID-19- ela ed my hs and “debunked”
hese on hei websi e, which p o ides he social media pla o ms wi h a baseline
and e e ence in ega d o which con en is inaccu a e and se es as a guide o deci-
sion-making (Rosen, 2020).
In addi ion, Facebook asks ac -checke s wi h e iewing con en . O e ime, his
p ac ice has expanded so ha he pla o m now wo ks wi h o e 80 independen
ac -checke s, allowing con en o be e iewed in o e 60 languages (Rosen, 2021).
To ensu e he independence and quali y o he ac -checking o ganiza ions, hey “a e
ce i ied h ough he non-pa isan In e na ional Fac -Checking Ne wo k, which is a
subsidia y o he jou nalism esea ch o ganiza ion “The Poyn e Ins i u e” (Face-
book, 2021 ).
Ano he la ge g oup o pa ne s includes expe s. Fo example, he pla o ms
show ha hey equen ly consul global heal h expe s when de eloping new s a e-
gies and policies. Twi e e en helps expe s o be hea d and ound by e i ying hei
accoun s, which migh inc ease hei each and c edibili y (Twi e Sa e y, 2020). In
his a ea, Twi e also o ganizes e en s whe e heal h expe s can in e ac wi h use s
and answe ques ions conce ning he i us (Twi e Sa e y, 2021).
Less common pa ne ships include he coope a ion wi h indus y pee s, o gan-
iza ions, and he media indus y. The coope a ion wi h o ganiza ions mos ly aims
o suppo use s’ news li e acy (Facebook, 2021 ). The coope a ion wi h he media
indus y aimed o suppo and p o ec jou nalis s o ensu e he a ailabili y o quali-
a i e and eliable in o ma ion and was mos ly accomplished h ough dona ions
(Facebook, 2021h; Twi e , 2021a). The pla o ms men ion “[w]o king oge he wi h
indus y pee s o keep people sa e” (Twi e , 2021a), bu conc e e ac ions a e no
communica ed.
1100
L.Wa nke e al.
1 3
Las ly, he pla o ms also p omo e c oss-sec o collabo a ion wo king oge he
wi h he a o emen ioned g oups as well as wi h use s, go e nmen s, and NGOs. As an
example, we can ci e YouTube’s T us ed Flagge P og am ha we desc ibed ea lie o a
simila app oach adop ed by Twi e (2021c).
4.4 Communi y guidelines andconsequences o  iola ions
Communi y guidelines build he basis o he pla o m go e nance and a e es ablished
based on co e alues such as eedom o exp ession (Facebook, 2021c). They a e also
a key elemen in he pla o m’s igh agains mis- and disin o ma ion. The guidelines
con ain policies and ules as o wha is allowed and wha is p ohibi ed om being
pos ed on social media pla o ms. Al hough he exac con en o he communi y guide-
lines and he ype o con en ha is p ohibi ed go beyond he scope o his a icle, i
is in e es ing o no e ha he guidelines speci ically iden i y COVID-19- ela ed opics
ha a e subjec o consequences. Thus, a he han o mula ing ague guidelines which
may p o ide mo e leeway o bo h use s and pla o ms, he pla o ms ha e decided
o implemen e y speci ic policies. As new conspi acy heo ies o my hs ega ding
COVID-19 de elop and a e debunked by o icial sou ces, hese need o be added o he
guidelines so ha he pla o ms a e able o limi he sp ead o such con en (YouTube,
2021a). YouTube (2019) also p o ides mo e insigh s in o he de elopmen p ocess o
communi y guidelines and hei adap a ions, showing ha he pla o ms a e eage o
in ol e a ious s akeholde s o imp o e hei se ice. Fu he , hey ha e no ed ha
hei COVID-19 policies “a e subjec o change in esponse o changes o global o
local heal h au ho i ies’ guidance on he i us” (YouTube, 2021a).
O equal conce n a e he consequences o use s o con en ha iola es he pla -
o m’s communi y guidelines. This is in pa a complemen o he in e en ion
app oaches al eady men ioned. The e a e di e en consequences o co ec i e meas-
u es o con en and use s who iola e he pla o ms’ ules. Fo example, Twi e
(2021b) es ablished a s ike sys em whe e di e en ypes o iola ions lead o he use
accumula ing s ike poin s. The mo e s ikes a use accumula es, he mo e se e e he
consequences a e. A e a 12-h accoun suspension, a 7-day suspension is imposed. I
a use accumula es mo e han i e s ikes, he accoun is locked pe manen ly. By his
measu e, he pla o m in ends o os e a lea ning e ec by inc easing use s’ awa eness
o policies (Twi e Sa e y, 2021). YouTube and Facebook use simila s ike sys ems.
Ano he mechanism in oduced by Facebook equi es g oup admins o empo a ily
e iew and app o e g oup con en o g oups whose membe s ha e p e iously iola ed
COVID-19 policies (Rosen, 2020). G oup admins a e also esponsible when he con-
en hey app o ed con ains a iola ion, and may ecei e a s ike (Facebook, 2021b).
5 Discussion
Social media pla o ms pu sue a ious app oaches o sel -go e nance o coun-
e mis- and disin o ma ion ela ed o COVID-19. In he ollowing, we discuss
ou indings and use he mechanisms desc ibed in he ITG li e a u e o answe ou
1101
1 3
Social media pla o ms’ esponses oCOVID‑19‑ ela ed mis‑…
esea ch ques ion o how social media pla o ms design hei IT sel -go e nance as a
esponse o Co id-19- ela ed mis- and disin o ma ion.
The pla o ms’ esponses iden i ied in ou analysis can be ela ed o he cu en
ITG amewo k consis ing o s uc u es, p ocesses, and ela ional mechanisms as
summa ized in Table5. In his sense, sc eening me hods and communi y guidelines
can be unde s ood in e ms o ITG p ocesses. Whe he con en iola es he pla -
o m’s ules is decided h ough o mal p ocedu es o IT- ela ed decision-making
ha a e execu ed h ough he sc eening me hods and communi y guidelines. Fu he ,
hey acili a e and enable he in e ac ion be ween managemen and business ope -
a ions. S uc u al in e en ion can also be unde s ood in e ms o ITG p ocesses.
The decision on limi ing con en ’s exposu e h ough echnical in e e ence cons i-
u es bo h he decision-making aspec and esponsibili y o ITG s uc u es as well as
he es ablishmen o an IT s a egy and policy as ITG p ocesses en ail. Empowe ing
use in e en ion can be in e p e ed in ligh o ITG p ocesses as an implemen a ion
o he pla o ms’ IT s a egies and policies o educa e use s. Fu he , he iden i ied
consequences o use s who iola e he pla o ms’ a e pa o he o malized ITG
p ocesses, which a e based on communi y guidelines and hus align business ou-
ines o co po a e policies. Las ly, he iden i ied pa ne ships can be in e p e ed in
he ligh o ITG ela ional mechanisms ocusing on he pa ne ships’ collabo a i e
cha ac e is ic. A he same ime, ex e nal pa ne ships p esen an addi ion o he cu -
en ITG amewo k as i is no solely limi ed o collabo a ion wi hin he o ganiza-
ion bu also includes ex e nal pa ne s. We p opose ha in o he ITG- ela ed si u-
a ions, in ol ing ex e nal pa ne s in he ITG mechanisms would also bene i he
o ganiza ion. As indica ed ea lie , ITG s uc u es do no eme ge om ou ex ensi e
body o da a. This absence al eady sugges s ha c ea ing new ITG s uc u es by, o
example, se ing up IT commi ees wi h speci ic expe ise, would con ibu e o he
e ec i eness o social media pla o ms’ esponses o mis- and disin o ma ion.
The da a show ha , al hough bo h empowe ing use in e en ion and s uc u al
in e en ion app oaches a e widely applied ac oss all h ee pla o ms, s uc u al
Table 5 Social media
pla o ms’ esponses o mis- and
disin o ma ion ela ed o ITG
mechanisms
ITG mechanisms Social media pla o ms’
esponses o mis- and disin-
o ma ion
S uc u es No indings in ou da a
P ocesses Sc eening me hods
Algo i hmic sc eening
Manual sc eening
In e en ion app oaches
S uc u al in e en ion
Empowe ing use in e en-
ion
Consequences o iola ions
Communi y guidelines
Rela ional mechanisms Pa ne ships
1102
L.Wa nke e al.
1 3
in e en ion app oaches we e less p esen in he da a. Since s uc u al in e en-
ion, e.g. al e ing algo i hms o p io i ize e i ied con en when adap ing a ing
and ecommenda ion sys ems, has a g ea e impac on he pla o ms’ business
model, his in u n po en ially inc eases he cos s o go e nance ac i i ies. I
appea s ha pla o ms a e mo e eluc an o apply and de elop hose in e en-
ion app oaches. Ou s udy hus empi ically con ibu es o he g owing li e a u e
on he in e linkages o pla o ms’ ope a ing p inciples and hei ITG e o s. The
b oade ITG li e a u e suppo s his in e p e a ion, as i shows ha go e nance
ac i i ies a e gene ally associa ed wi h conside able cos s, which, in u n, impac s
he design and ex en o such ac i i ies (Hube e al., 2017). Going beyond he
gene al ole o (sel -)go e nance cos s, o he s udies ha e shown ha con en
con aining mis- o disin o ma ion is a ac ing mo e a en ion o social media
pla o ms han o he con en (Vosoughi e al., 2018, p. 1149) and is hus anked
highe by he algo i hms (A aaz, 2020; Culli o d, 2020; Eisens a , 2021; Rob-
e s, 2020). This is suppo ed by ou obse a ion o empowe ing use in e en ion
app oaches being pu sued o e s uc u al in e en ion app oaches which would
ac i ely in e e e wi h he pla o m’s algo i hms and migh aliena e some use s.
These a e u he indica o s ha he pla o ms’ economic in e es s in g owing he
pla o m migh domina e and a ec he scope o hei in e en ions, which would
equi e ac i e al e a ions o hei sys ems such as hose p esen ed in ou indings.
Going back o Ma in’s (2021) concep ualiza ion o a hie a chy o no ms de e -
mining he sp ead o unin en ional and delibe a e alse in o ma ion, we see ha
h ough he co e laye , pla o ms enable echo chambe o ming and p oblems
such as misin o ma ion sp eading. By keeping legal no ms in he i s laye o a
minimum, he e is g ea e oom o pla o ms o e ade hei esponsibili y wi h-
ou ha ing a compliance issue. Thus, we a gue ha he no ms should be e ised
and ha pla o ms should place mo e emphasis on he i s laye . By inc easing
he legal no ms, a sa e en i onmen can be es ablished and domina ing p ob-
lems such as mis- and disin o ma ion can be educed. Focusing hei esponses
on empowe ing use in e en ion app oaches allows pla o ms o de e hei
esponsibili y o use s wi hou ac i ely dec easing he amoun o mis- and disin-
o ma ion on hei pla o m. This is u he suppo ed by an Dijck e al., (2018,
p.147), who s a e ha pla o ms and hei s akeholde s “need o pu long- e m
public alue c ea ion o e sho - e m economic gain”. Fu he mo e, such meas-
u es would indica e a shi om olun a y sel -go e nance o compliance wi h
legal no ms, i.e., go e nmen egula ion, hus po en ially educing complexi y.
When go e nance challenges ela ed o managing con en on social media pla -
o ms become a compliance issue, we a gue, his may esul in mo e esponsible
p ocesses (e.g., daily business ou ines), go e nance s uc u es (e.g., oles and
esponsibili ies), and ela ional mechanisms (e.g., collabo a ion be ween di e -
en co po a e le els) gi en a educed le el o ambigui y. A he same ime, ini ial
in es men s in o co esponding go e nance measu es migh e en ually lead o a
educ ion o go e nance cos s (Hube e al., 2017). ITG esea ch should es ablish
whe he and o wha ex en measu es on he spec um o go e nmen egula ion
(compliance) and sel -go e nance ( olun a y ac ion) esul in de- o inc eased
complexi y o cos s.
1109
1 3
Social media pla o ms’ esponses oCOVID‑19‑ ela ed mis‑…
ela ionship be ween business model and go e nance measu es beyond concep-
ual heo iza ion.
Funding Open Access unding enabled and o ganized by P ojek DEAL. No unding was ecei ed o
conduc ing his s udy.
Da a a ailabili y The da ase s gene a ed du ing and analyzed du ing he cu en s udy a e a ailable om
he co esponding au ho on easonable eques .
Decla a ions
Compe ing in e es s The au ho s ha e no ele an inancial o non- inancial in e es s o disclose.
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Publishe ’s No e Sp inge Na u e emains neu al wi h ega d o ju isdic ional claims in published maps
and ins i u ional a ilia ions.
Lina Wa nke is a esea ch associa e a he Helmu Schmid Uni e si y Hambu g (Ge many). He esea ch
in e es s ocus on sus ainabili y epo ing, co po a e go e nance and co po a e social esponsibili y.
Anna‑Lena Maie is a p ojec and change manage a he ma-co ma i imes compe enzcen um GmbH and
o e sees ans o ma ion p ojec s ela ed o digi aliza ion and he ene gy ansi ion. She also is a lec u e
and esea che co e ing opics such as business and go e nmen , business and peace, poli ical CSR and
esponsible managemen . She ecei ed he PhD om he Uni e si y o Hambu g (Ge many), whe e she
augh se e al cou ses on (in e na ional) s a egic managemen , business e hics and CSR.
Di k Ul ich Gilbe is a p o esso o business e hics and managemen a he Uni e si y o Hambu g (Ge -
many). He ecei ed his PhD om he Uni e si y o F ank u and held posi ions a he Uni e si y o New
Sou h Wales and he Uni e si y o Nu embe g. His mos ecen esea ch ocuses on in e na ional accoun -
abili y s anda ds, labou igh s in global supply chains, poli ical CSR, and esponsible managemen edu-
ca ion. He has published in in e na ionally acclaimed jou nals, such as Business E hics Qua e ly, Busi-
ness and Socie y, Academy o Managemen Lea ning and Educa ion, Jou nal o Managemen Inqui y,
Managemen In e na ional Re iew, and he Jou nal o Business E hics.

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Au ho s and A ilia ions
LinaWa nke1 · Anna‑LenaMaie 2 · Di kUl ichGilbe 3
* Lina Wa nke
lina.wa [email p o ec ed]
Anna-Lena Maie
[email p o ec ed]
Di k Ul ich Gilbe
[email p o ec ed]
1 Facul y o Economics andSocial Sciences, Helmu -Schmid -Uni e si ä / Uni e si ä De
Bundesweh Hambu g, Hols enho weg 85, 22043Hambu g, Ge many
2 Ma-Co Ma i imes Compe enzcen um, Köhlb anddeich 30, 20457Hambu g, Ge many
3 Depa men o Socioeconomics, Facul y o Business, Economics andSocial Sciences,
Uni e si ä Hambu g, Von-Melle-Pa k 9, 20146Hambu g, Ge many