• by Colin Kirkland , September 27, 2024

TikTok is making an effort to crack down on the spread of health misinformation on its platform, partnering with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Fides network, a community of healthcare professionals and content creators across the U.S., U.K., France, Japan, Korea, Indonesia, Mexico, and Brazil, marking a push for more educational content.

The health professionals who are especially active on social media involved in the Fides network will be tasked with translating complex scientific research across various health topics into “relatable and digestive” video content for TikTok's billion-plus monthly active users worldwide. Their main goal will be to inform the public while dispelling active misinformation.

A boost of scientifically backed, unbiased fact-checking videos surrounding topical health concerns and questions may help flip the flow of in-feed trends based around biased, under-researched and misinformed health video content, which has risen across all major social media platforms since the COVID-19 pandemic.

To further equip creators, TikTok says it will be working closely with WHO to provide access to creator training programs and resources, while also making a $3 million donation to support WHO's global work in destigmatizing mental health conditions and creating “an informed, empathetic, and supportive” community online.

The World Health Organization originally launched Fides in 2020 and has since been mobilizing content creators to counter misinformation, growing its community to over 800 creators reaching 150 million people across various social platforms, WHO says.

With one in four young adults actively seeking news content on social platforms, WHO thinks it can use popular digital channels to not only combat misinformation but encourage positive health dialogues, especially among younger audiences.