An Replace to Patreon’s Insurance policies on COVID-19-Associated Medical Misinformation

Because the starting of 2020 the world has been united within the battle to include and defeat the COVID-19 pandemic. In current months, as governments world wide have begun approving vaccines and different medicines to fight the unfold and severity of COVID-19, we now have additionally noticed a rise in on-line exercise selling medical-misinformation. We’ve been impressed by the actions that first-responders and well being officers have taken everywhere in the world so as to save peoples’ lives, and need to be certain that Patreon shouldn’t be supporting efforts to miseducate patrons or the general public at-large on COVID-19 prevention, mitigation, and therapy.

Beginning right this moment, Patreon is updating its group tips to deal with content material spreading misinformation on COVID-19.

Patreon won’t permit creators that repeatedly use unfounded or debunked theories to argue in opposition to broadly supported public well being measures on COVID-19. Examples of this embrace repeated posts that advocate consuming bleach or utilizing UV lights inside your physique as an efficient different to a vaccine. As all the time, we are going to work with creators on to deliver their content material again inside our tips.

Within the weeks forward, Patreon will introduce fact-checking assets for posts discussing COVID-19 designed to assist creators and patrons entry trusted data. As well as, our groups will add post-level moderation instruments to deal with every state of affairs with the nuanced response it deserves.

To be clear, this coverage replace won’t impression creators making content material that debates the deserves of, or expresses skepticism round, public well being suggestions. We’ll all the time encourage the broadest dialogue potential amongst creators and their patrons. Our Belief and Security group will work straight with creators to make sure that their content material doesn’t include unfounded or debunked assertions on COVID-19 that will dissuade the general public from taking preventative or responsive public well being measures (like a vaccine). In case you’re a creator who’s not sure of whether or not or not your exercise on Patreon is inside our group tips, please be at liberty to ship an e mail to us at tips@patreon.com.

Whereas the COVID-19 pandemic has introduced unprecedented disruption to lives throughout the globe, we’re hopeful that we could also be turning a nook on this disaster. As world well being officers and emergency responders work to include and finish the epidemic, we’re optimistic in regards to the alternatives in retailer for creators in 2021 and past. We stay up for persevering with our work to maintain them secure and safe in a post-covid world.