Twitter expanding fact-checking ‘Birdwatch’ project

Twitter is expanding its user generated fact-checking program “Birdwatch,” the company said Friday. 

After testing Birdwatch with 10,000 users in a pilot program over the last year, the community generated notes will start appearing on tweets to a larger group of users on Twitter in the U.S.

Users will also be able to rate the notes to provide further input. 

In order for a note to appear on a tweet, it needs to be rated helpful by “enough” Birdwatch contributors from “different perspectives,” Twitter’s vice president of product Keith Coleman said in a blog post. 

The difference in perspectives is determined by how people have rated notes in the past, not based on their demographics, Coleman said. 

Birdwatch is part of Twitter’s policies and programs to combat misinformation on the platform. 

The company also announced a partnership with The Associated Press and Reuters in August to help identify and elevate credible information on Twitter. 

Birdwatch also uses feedback from AP and Reuters as one way to assess the quality of information elevated by Birdwatch participants.