Facebook is offering the World Health Organization free advertising in an attempt to clamp down on misinformation about coronavirus.
The group will get “as many free ads as they need,” and Facebook will also offer ad credits to other health organizations, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said.

“We’re focused on making sure everyone can access credible and accurate information,” Zuckerberg wrote in a Tuesday evening Facebook post. “This is critical in any emergency, but it’s especially important when there are precautions you can take to reduce the risk of infection.”
Facebook is also directing users to information from the WHO and other health authorities with a pop-up that appears when they search for posts about the coronavirus, according to Zuckerberg. Users in countries where the WHO has reported person-to-person transmission of the virus will also see that pop-up in their news feeds, he said.
The advertising giveaway complements Facebook’s pledge to remove posts containing false claims and conspiracy theories about the coronavirus, which had sickened more than 92,000 people and killed some 3,100 as of Tuesday. Facebook has also worked to crack down on advertisements that promise to cure or prevent the potentially deadly virus, such as those claiming that face masks are guaranteed to prevent its spread.
Facebook is also examining ways in which its services can be used to help contain the outbreak, according to Zuckerberg. Researchers are using Facebook data such as population density maps and mobility data “to better understand how the virus is spreading,” he said.

With Post wires