Social network Pinterest has updated its rules to ban climate misinformation, which the company says makes it the first major digital platform to clear guidelines against false or misleading climate change content in both posts and advertising.
The lifestyle platform is used by people to find inspiration about how to shop or style their homes.
In its policy update, Pinterest said it would now prohibit any content that could harm the public’s well-being, safety or trust, including that which denied the existence or impact of climate change and the human influence on it.
The updated rules also prohibit false claims about climate change solutions, content that misrepresents scientific data and misleading content around public safety emergencies such as natural disasters or extreme weather events.
In addition, the platform confirmed it had updated its advertising guidelines to explicitly prohibit any adverts that contained conspiracy theories, misinformation or disinformation linked to climate change.
Misinformation has been a problem for social media platforms throughout the pandemic, with many updating their guidelines in an attempt to more effectively clamp down on the issue.
But campaigners have also urged tech firms to do more to combat climate change misinformation in particular, with experts warning that the subject is likely to become more prominent among conspiracy theorists as they pivot away from Covid-19 and public health misinformation.
“Pinterest believes in cultivating a space that’s trusted and truthful for those using our platform,” Pinterest’s head of policy, Sarah Bromma, said.
“This bold move is an expansion of our broader misinformation guidelines, which we first developed in 2017 to address public health misinformation, and have since updated to address new and emerging issues as they come to the forefront.
“The expanded climate misinformation policy is yet another step in Pinterest’s journey to combat misinformation and create a safe space online.”
