Alphabet Inc.’s Google is hoping an ad campaign can help prevent misinformation percolating about Ukrainian refugees who fled Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion from shaping public opinion.
Google is premiering a series of 90-second videos in Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic that will seek to educate viewers about how to avoid being manipulated, according to Beth Goldberg, the head of research at its anti-propaganda unit Jigsaw.
The spread of misinformation has become a major political issue in the European Union, with watchdogs warning that Russian-affiliated sites and social media accounts are promoting false pro-Kremlin narratives six months into the war. An effective response remains elusive, despite an EU ban of Russian state media like RT and new rules ordering internet giants like Google and Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc. to police their platforms more strictly for hate speech and fake news.
