With the speed of a tortoise and an only recently acquired clarity of its public responsibility, YouTube has kicked off Robert F. Kennedy Jr., osteopathic physician Joseph Mercola, and others who have used the platform to spread anti-vaccine misinformation.
At least better late than never, YouTube is banning content that “falsely alleges that approved vaccines are dangerous and cause chronic health effects, claims that vaccines do not reduce transmission or contraction of disease, or contains misinformation on the substances contained in vaccines,” a blog post said. This expands its policy of prohibiting medical misinformation, which anti-vaxxers mistakenly feel should be protected by freedom of speech and the press.