As everyone knows, one of the biggest problems that social media network Facebook has to face since last year has been the fake news, given the fact that this is something that has started to spread over the platform, and there hasn't been any efficient way to solve it. Far from getting out of the heat, Mark Zuckerberg´s network is once again under the spotlight because of this situation, and this time things got legal.
A Simple Selfie Became A Fake News On Facebook
Apparently, Syrian refugee called Anas Modamani sued Facebook because of a selfie that he took with Germany´s Chancellor Angela Merkel that was used in a fake new story. In fact, this has been a really controversial case, given the fact that after the photo went viral in August 2015, the false information involved him with the terror attacks that took place in Brussels and on a Christmas market in Berlin, which made people believe that Modamani was the terrorist behind these vile actions.
The opening remarks from lawyers representing both sides were taken place in a court in Wurzburg, Germany, and while Facebook assures that most of the posts were deleted, Modamani's representatives claimed that the fake news still appeared widely on the platform. Also, they explained that the social media could have done more to prevent the way this situation spread, but Facebook lawyer Martin Munz countered that the company would need to employ a "wonder machine" to detect each share that users made.
Facebook Is Getting A Lot Of Criticisms In Germany
After the hearing, Modamani said that he only wants peace in his life and that even when many people doesn't believe that, all he did was to take a selfie with Angela Merkel when she visited the shelter he was living at two years ago. In fact, the photo he took with Germany´s Chancellor has been used by media as an emblem of her openness to migrants and refugees.
Although this is probably the most famous case against Facebook in this country, the truth is that the social media network is actually facing a lot of criticisms because of the fake news, given the fact that Germany is grappling with disinformation in the lead-up to a general election that will take place later this year.
