How Facebook, Twitter, YouTube Handled Trump's Premature Election Victory Claim

The U.S elections have been a mixed bag for social media companies. On the one hand, they received big advertising dollars due to their massive reach, while on the other, they remain at the center of election misinformation controversy.

Social media giants like Facebook, Inc FB, Twitter Inc TWTR, and Alphabet Inc GOOG GOOGL had been preparing for the scenario of handling misinformation by laying out policies well ahead of the election. Yet, when the day came, not all went to plan.

President Donald Trump prematurely claimed election victory in critical states on Tuesday night, even when the counting wasn't over and none of the leading media outlets had called a win for either candidate. Here's how the social media companies reacted to Trump's move.

Twitter Inc. TWTR: The company had announced that it would label tweets making claims about election results until at least two preapproved outlets from ABC News, Associated Press, CNN, Decision Desk HQ, Fox News, and NBC News declared winners. 

Jumping into swift action, Twitter restricted Trump's tweet that claiming election victory. TechCrunch reports that the company also hid another three of Trump's tweets with a warning label that the content was "disputed and misleading." 

Twitter also attached a label saying the votes are being counted on many tweets associated with Trump claiming victory in Pennsylvania. The state has not been called for either candidate, as counting is still underway.

Facebook Inc. FB: According to TechCrunch, Trump's victory message on Facebook earned a label reminding users that election night results and final results may differ, but unlike Twitter, but Facebook didn't restrict the post.

The company has large pop-ups appearing at the top of Facebook and Instagram feeds notifying users that "Votes Are Being Counted." More importantly, the notification has a timestamp to indicate the recency.

See Also: Facebook Says It Isn't Stopping Presidential Hopefuls From Declaring Premature Victory In States

Alphabet Inc. GOOGL GOOG: The parent company of YouTube has a different approach. YouTube said it wouldn't remove a video that claims Democrats are committing voter fraud against Republican ballots, CNBC reports.

The video from One American News Network claiming Trump has won and the election process is being undermined is still up. Still, the company has removed ads, eliminating the revenue stream or its creators.

The company told the press that the video is not in violation of its community guidelines. It sports a module below the video that notes, "Results may not be final," directing users to a search page, as per TechCrunch.

See Also: Worst-Case Scenario Off The Table? Market Experts React To Election Results