Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Kathy Manning (NC-06)
Washington, DC – Today, Representatives Kathy Manning (NC-06), Deborah Ross (NC-02), Alma Adams (NC-12), Valerie Foushee (NC-04), and Wiley Nickel (NC-13), sent letters to social media and television broadcasting executives, calling on their companies to take action against the dangerous spread of misinformation related to the federal government’s response to Hurricane Helene.
“Since the storm, multiple reports of misinformation and false claims about the federal government’s recovery efforts, largely focused on the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and its employees, have hindered recovery efforts. These attacks have included claims that FEMA is ignoring certain states or regions, conspiracy theories claiming that the federal government was responsible for the hurricane, and antisemitic attacks on Jewish FEMA officials and other Jewish public officials in North Carolina,” the Members wrote .
The Members continued , “The spread of misinformation online has resulted in disturbing real-world impacts. Threats against FEMA and other federal employees as a result of online misinformation have forced the agency to suspend services temporarily or to move employees, slowing the overall recovery effort. Just this week, FEMA advised agencies in western North Carolina to relocate workers in response to threats of violence against FEMA employees. Residents, responding to rumors on social media, also have reportedly refused critical assistance out of fear.”
To combat the harmful spread of online misinformation regarding the federal government’s emergency response, the Members proposed social media companies take the following actions:
Flag Hurricane Helene or FEMA-related misinformation and elevate reliable information about public safety from local, state, and federal officials. Highlight verified information from FEMA and state and local government officials debunking existing myths around the Hurricane Helene response. Remain in close communication with the federal government regarding storm response-related misinformation and future adverse weather events. Enact policies to prevent the spread of disinformation concerning the federal response to Hurricane Helene.
The Members also suggested television broadcasters take the following steps to stem the dangerous spread of federal emergency response misinformation:
Report on misinformation related to Hurricane Helene and clarify the current spread of rumors and misinformation to your viewership. Elevate reliable information about public safety from local, state, and federal officials, as well as resources dedicated to debunking Hurricane Helene-related misinformation, such as FEMA’s Hurricane Rumor Response page. Establish policies to carefully evaluate incoming tips, social media posts, photos, or videos related to the storm recovery efforts before reporting or elevating potentially misleading information. Remain in close communication with the federal government regarding storm response-related misinformation and future adverse weather events.
An unprecedented response to the damage caused by Hurricane Helene is ongoing in Western North Carolina, with state, federal, and local teams working around the clock to provide assistance to the region. To date, over $100 million in FEMA individual assistance has been approved for North Carolina households affected by Hurricane Helene. Six Disaster Recovery Centers are operating in impacted areas and have served more than 2,500 visitors, while FEMA is providing temporary hotel stays to more than 2,000 households through Transitional Sheltering Assistance.
Read the full letter addressed to social media companies here and to television broadcasters here.
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