YouTube lets One America News video falsely claiming Trump won the election remain up
YouTube isn't removing a video from the far-right One America News Network falsely claiming President Trump has won the 2020 election.
A video from the pro-Trump network posted on Nov. 4 falsely claims the president "won four more years in office" when the winner of the election has not yet been projected. It cites Trump's supposed victories in several states that have not been called by news networks and some that have been called for Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden. The video also pushes baseless allegations of voter fraud.
But YouTube isn't removing the video, which has amassed over 360,000 views. A spokesperson told CNBC that its policies "prohibit content misleading viewers about voting, for example content aiming to mislead voters about the time, place, means or eligibility requirements for voting, or false claims that could materially discourage voting," but "the content of this video doesn't rise to that level."
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YouTube noted that the information in the video is false, though, as it pulled ads from it while telling CNBC the platform doesn't "allow ads to run on content that undermines confidence in elections with demonstrably false information." The video has a label on it saying that "results may not be final," but that's the same label that has also been applied to accurate videos about the election, CNN notes.
As misinformation spreads online following Election Day, Twitter has placed warning labels on numerous misleading tweets including several by President Trump himself, while Facebook has also rolled out labels on Trump posts, including one that notes that the election result isn't final. YouTube previously pulled live streams on election night showing false results, The New York Times notes.
Fadi Quran, campaign director at the progressive nonprofit Avaaz, argued to the Times that "platforms need to quickly expand their efforts before the country is plunged into further chaos and confusion," adding, "it is a democratic emergency."
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Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.
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