(Credit: Anna Moneymaker / Getty Images)
Meta should allow an obviously fake Joe Biden video to remain on Facebook, but the company should consider revising its "narrow" manipulated media policy, Meta's Oversight Board says.
The video in question was not edited by AI tools, wasn't depicting Biden saying anything he didn't say, and the edits were "obvious and therefore unlikely to mislead" the public, so it didn't break Meta's rules, according to the board.
The video in question began circulating on Facebook in May 2023. It was made from a video that was posted the prior October where the President was swapping "I voted" stickers with his adult granddaughter, who was a first-time voter at the time. In the unedited video, Biden places the sticker above his granddaughter's chest and kisses her on the cheek.
The faked video was edited in such a way that it made Biden look like he was inappropriately touching his granddaughter's chest. It ran on a seven-second loop with the lyric "girls rub on your titties" from the song "Simon Says" by Pharoahe Monch along with a caption that says President Biden is a "sick pedophile" and his voters are "mentally unwell."
It was taken down automatically when it was first posted. However, the user who posted it appealed the decision, which resulted in a human reviewer deciding that the content was not in violation of Meta's policies as they're written. The video was restored on Facebook.
In its statement about its ruling, the Oversight Board said that while the video could stay on the platform, the rules about such content are "too narrow" and Meta should review and revise them.
"The current policy only prohibits edited videos showing people saying words they did not say (there is no prohibition covering individuals doing something they did not do) and only applies to video created through AI," the Oversight Board said in its statement. "Nevertheless, the Board finds that Meta’s Manipulated Media policy is lacking in persuasive justification, is incoherent and confusing to users, and fails to clearly specify the harms it is seeking to prevent. In short, the policy should be reconsidered"
Meta tells Engadget it's "reviewing the Oversight Board's guidance and will respond publicly" in the next 60 days but it's unclear if any policy changes will take effect before the 2024 election.