Facebook doesn't scan Messenger for fake news. But it definitely should

Facebook has been cracking down on fake news, but it's been missing one very important place of conversation.

Messenger, the standalone app for Facebook's private messaging feature, is not being included in the company's fact-checking program. 

In March, Facebook recruited a team of third-party fact-checkers to flag fake news articles that were being shared on its network. It was part of an increased effort to limit the reach of misinformation on the site in wake of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. 

Fake news articles now receive a disputed tag when they are posted to the Facebook News Feed. But that's not the case if a user sends the same article to an individual or group through Messenger.  Read more...