60 Minutes took intention at the specter of on-line misinformation — specifically from conservative voices on social media — and correspondent Lesley Stahl left Rep. Jim Jordan virtually speechless when pressing him on whether or not the 2020 election was once stolen or now not.

The segment served as one thing of a warning for misinformation beforehand of the 2024 general election, and relied on the myriad of debates over truth and data surrounding the 2020 election, which featured quite a lot of commentary about Covid and the efficacy of vaccines. There’s no denying the phase generally blamed conservative voices for misinformation, as it featured an instructional researcher who stated as much.

“As large tech corporations battle with the right way to maintain false and dangerous knowledge off their social networks, the Supreme Court docket is wrestling with whether or not structures like Fb and Twitter, now called X, have the precise to decide what users can say on their websites,” Stahl opened the phase. “The dispute centers on a pair of laws passed in the crimson states of Florida and Texas over the query of First Amendment rights on the net.”

“The Supreme Courtroom is taking into account whether the systems are like newspapers, which have free speech rights to make their very own editorial choices, or if they’re extra like phone companies that in simple terms transmit everyone’s speech. If the laws are upheld, the structures will be forced to hold hate speech and false medical knowledge,” she persevered. “The very content most giant tech companies have spent years trying to cast off via groups of content material moderators. However within the process, conservatives claim that the companies have engaged in a conspiracy to suppress their speech.”

What adopted was a clip of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene denying she put out misinformation, seconds after an outdated Tweet of her “falsely claiming that there were extraordinarily high amounts of Covid vaccine deaths,” per Stahl’s fair description.

While the segement accurately portrayed the specter of unmoderated political misinformation within the digital and social media age, it made clear that they saw the risk largley coming from the appropriate.

Enter Kate Starbird, a professor on the University of Washington and chief of a misinformation research staff created beforehand of the 2020 election. Stahl requested her if she idea her analysis discovered “that there was once extra misinformation unfold through conservatives.”

“Completely,” Starbird responded. “I believe now not just our research. Analysis throughout the board, looking on the 2020 election, found that there was once extra misinformation unfold by way of those that have been supporters of Donald Trump or conservatives. And the occasions of January 6th more or less underscore this. You see, the parents climbing up the Capitol constructing were supporters of Donald Trump. And so they had been they have been misinformed by means of these false claims and that prompted those actions.”

Stahl then offered Jim Jordan to first debate a controversial tweet from Robert Kennedy, Jr, which recommended the demise of baseball legend Henry Aaron used to be connected to the Covid vaccine. The Biden administration reportedly requested Twitter to take down the tweet as a result of it was once misleading, however it is still up today.

But things received most fascinating within the back-and-forth between Stahl and Jordan over the 2020 election outcomes and whether or not or now not it was rigged or stolen, as former President Donald Trump has repeated advert nauseam.

Stahl: Congressman Jordan argues that the tech corporations shouldn’t take away most of what they name misinformation.

Jordan: I think you let the American individuals recognize the American folks, their common sense, to figure out what’s correct. What is it?

Stahl: Smartly, what about this concept that the 2020 election was stolen? You think that these companies should allow folks to say that, and individuals can make up their very own mind and that they must assume the.

Jordan: American people are good. Seem, I’ve now not stated that. What I’ve stated is there have been issues about the 2020 election. I think Americans consider that.

Stahl: No they don’t.

Jordan: You don’t assume they’d think there were concerns with the 2020 election?

Stahl: Most of the people don’t. Don’t question the result. That’s all I’m saying. They don’t question whether or not Biden gained or not. Right. Right. What individuals most of the people don’t question. OK. But the consequence.

Jordan: Right.

 

Watch above by means of CBS.

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