President Joe Biden walked back criticism that Facebook was “killing” people en masse by allowing coronavirus falsehoods to spread online after both sides traded disinformation accusations.
It was part of a broader effort by the White House to cool down what had become a contentious debate over policing social media for posts federal authorities find harmful.
After a war of words over the weekend, Biden was asked about the dispute Monday.
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“I’m glad you asked me that question,” Biden said after delivering remarks on the state of the economy.
“Facebook isn’t killing people,” he said, arguing instead that a dozen social media users on the platform were the ones “killing.”
This comes after the president said on Friday Facebook was responsible for Americans dying from the coronavirus, sparking a battle with the social media giant that lasted through the weekend.
He said he hoped the company would do more to combat “the outrageous misinformation” about coronavirus vaccines appearing on the platform “instead of taking it personally.”
Surgeon General Vivek Murthy urged social media companies to police misinformation more aggressively on their platforms, a sentiment other top Biden officials backed.
On Monday, White House press secretary Jen Psaki pointed to an Economist/YouGov poll that showed 1 in 5 Americans surveyed said they believed the U.S. government was using vaccines to implant microchips into the population.
Psaki said the White House isn’t fighting Facebook but will continue to pursue its options.
“I don’t think we’ve taken any options off the table. That’s up to Congress,” she said. “We are not in a war or a battle with Facebook. We are in a battle with the virus.”
Over the weekend, Facebook rebutted Biden’s “killing” charges, publicly accusing him of lashing out after missing a critical vaccination deadline.
“The Biden administration has chosen to blame a handful of American social media companies,” said Guy Rosen, Facebook vice president of integrity, in a statement Saturday. “The fact is that vaccine acceptance among Facebook users in the U.S. has increased.”
Rosen said the company was not responsible for the Biden administration missing its July 4 vaccination target, which aimed to reach 70% of Americans with at least one dose.
“Facebook is not the reason this goal was missed,” he wrote.
The memo was titled “Moving Past the Finger Pointing.”
Earlier, Facebook spokesman Kevin McAlister pushed back on Biden’s claim arguing the company “will not be distracted by accusations which aren’t supported by the facts.”
“The facts show that Facebook is helping save lives,” he added.
Across the country, coronavirus infections are on the rise, attributable to the highly transmissible delta variant and slowing vaccination rates.
The Biden administration has few tools at its disposal to improve uptake beyond increasing vaccination rates. But reaching shot-averse people isn’t easy.
Seventy-four percent of vaccine-hesitant voters oppose a door-to-door vaccination campaign, according to a poll conducted by Scott Rasmussen/RMG Research between July 15-17. The poll surveyed 1,200 registered voters.
Murthy didn’t back down over the weekend.
“The reality is that misinformation is still spreading like wildfire in our country, aided and abetted by technology platforms,” he told Fox News on Sunday.
Murthy said the platforms “have enabled misinformation to poison our information environment, with little accountability to their users.”
But a move to halt the spread of disinformation online has stoked criticism amid concerns the government is seeking to police free speech.
Biden administration officials have approached Facebook and other social media companies about false information appearing on their platforms, which Psaki said they were “flagging” to halt the spread.
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Though she clarified her remarks, the idea that the government was actively attempting to censor speech on social media sparked widespread outcry. Last year, social media platforms blocked users from sharing reports on the business dealings of the then-Democratic nominee’s son, Hunter Biden, during the presidential campaign.
Appearing on Fox News on Sunday, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, a Republican, lashed out. Biden officials are “going to monopolists and saying, ‘You are our tool to censor views we disagree with,’” he said.
