Facebook rolls out news tab to focus on 'high-quality journalism'

Facebook announced that it has started rolling out its dedicated ‘news tab’ which will be curated by professionals with a journalism background. Facebook CEO and co-founder Mark Zuckerberg, in a discussion with Robert Thomson, Chief Executive of News Corp, said there is a dedicated space in the Facebook app that is focussed on high-quality journalism.

“It's no secret that internet has really disrupted the news business model and I just think that every internet platform has the responsibility to try to help fund and form partnerships to support news”, said Zuckerberg.

“We have put together a team of folks who have experience in journalism and a background in this. I don't think it is something that is done just by computers,” he added.

Read: Facebook To Set Up 'Supreme Court' To Review Its Content Decisions

Facing flak for allowing disinformation

The Facebook co-founder said that it will have the personalization feature but the top stuff will be curated by people with journalism background. Facebook has been facing flak for allegedly allowing disinformation on its platform in the garb of news. Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren had accused Facebook of changing its advertisement policy for spreading disinformation and to allow politicians to 'run ads with known lies'.

Read: Facebook Launches A News Section - And Will Pay Publishers

Independent oversight board

After intense criticism for its content decisions, Facebook had, earlier, unveiled its blueprint for an independent oversight board, where people can appeal to review the company’s content decisions. It gave details on the structure of the oversight board and its relationship to Facebook in the form of a charter.  

"The Oversight Board will make Facebook more accountable and improve our decision-making. This charter is a critical step towards what we hope will become a model for our industry,” said Nick Clegg, VP Global Affairs and Communications, Facebook.

Read: Lawmakers Grill Zuckerberg, Ask To Fix Facebook Before Launching Libra

Read: Facebook To Make "big Announcement" On Journalism: Mark Zuckerberg