Meta has added some new elements to its Safety Hub mini-site which will better highlight its various safety resources for journalists and public figures across its apps.
As you can see in this example, Meta has added a new section which features dedicated advice for journalists looking to make best use of Meta’s apps, in order to help them avoid risk and harm.
A per Meta:
“We understand journalists are at a higher risk of harm because of their occupation. We want to make sure journalists feel equipped to manage their online safety with tools and resources to safeguard their sources, contacts, logins and personal information.”
The section includes a 48-page Safety Guide for journalists, covering all aspects of Meta app use, while there are also links to Meta’s range of account security tools, including Facebook Protect, which provides additional safety measures for those more likely to be targeted by hackers.
There’s also information on how journalists can register their details with Meta, and the Meta Journalism Project, which also aims to provide protection and resources for journalists.
Meta’s Safety Hub includes various sections dedicated to vulnerable communities, including youth, women, and LGBTQ+ safety, among others. That’s in addition to the platform’s general safety and security tips, while there’s also a heap of links to external support resources and tools to help all users manage their in-app experiences.
The addition of a dedicated section for journalists recognizes the challenges that they face, especially in the current environment where correspondents are demonized for their work, and presented by many influential people as representatives of certain regimes or organizations.
Which is predominantly not true, but the era of partisan journalism, which, incidentally, has been fueled by social media engagement, has muddied the waters on what motivates such, which now sees questions raised about every reporter, as to why they’re saying what they are.
The vast majority of journalists are not being influenced by politicians and/or billionaire benefactors with skewed agendas, the vast majority are independent thinkers who are seeking truth and transparency, in the best ways that they can communicate such. But with prominent voices seeking to discredit media coverage, for whatever reason, that’s led to increasing criticism and targeting of journalists, which is why Meta is now providing safety resources specifically for those in this profession.
Which is a sad state of affairs, but that is the world in which we currently live.
You can check out all of Meta’s Safety Center resources here.