FB big: Users to blame for misinfo

Facebook doesn’t spread misinformation, people do — at least that’s the take of a top exec at the tech giant.

“Individual humans” are to blame for spreading misinformation on Facebook, Andrew Bosworth — vice president of augmented and virtual reality at Meta, Facebook’s parent — said on “Axios on HBO” on Sunday.

Bosworth swatted down critics who say the company has amplified misinformation about COVID-19 and other topics.

“Individual humans are the ones who choose to believe or not believe a thing. They are the ones who choose to share or not share a thing,” Bosworth said.

He equated regulating misinformation on the platform to removing content that’s simply unfavorable in the eyes of some people.

“I don’t feel comfortable at all saying they don’t have a voice because I don’t like what they said,” he told Axios.

When pressed on the company’s role in spreading at least some misinformation that may have contributed to vaccine hesitancy or otherwise crippled the world’s pandemic response, Bosworth again shifted blame on to individuals who he said wanted to see information like that.

“That’s their choice. They are allowed to do that. You have an issue with those people. You don’t have an issue with Facebook,” he said. “At some point the onus . . . should be . . . on the individual.”

Bosworth also questioned if Facebook can define what is misinformation.

“I’m very uncomfortable with the idea that we possess enough fundamental rightness . . . to exercise that kind of power on a citizen, another human,” he said.