Are Community Notes the future of social media moderation?
Community Notes first started on X to “create a better informed world by empowering people on X to collaboratively add context to potentially misleading posts.” But its effectiveness compared to traditional content moderation is debatable. Community Notes is unique in that it relies on the X community (aka its users like you) to flag any misinformation and add notes to posts to correct any errors they spot. In theory, it’s got potential, but relying on users who may be passively scrolling to stop and correct the content they see is suspect. Plus, there’s also the possibility of more human error when correcting human error. Nonetheless, despite a rocky reception, it appears that Community Notes as a concept is here to stay. We’ve even seen it appear on other social media sites such as Facebook and TikTok.
Summary
The pros and cons of Community Notes
Misinformation is a real problem, especially on social media, so anything that can help to correct the spread of misinformation is a good thing. Community Notes are a positive in that they give social media users a voice and a way to call out anything they deem to be incorrect. On X, at least, multiple Community Notes contributors need to rate a Community Note as helpful for it to be publicly shown on a post, and moreover, the ratings need to come from contributors who typically have different points of view based on previous Community Notes contributions. As a result, assurances have been made to ensure that the Community Notes visible on posts are as accurate as can be.
However, while Community Notes contributors are specific users who have applied to take on this responsibility, they may not be inclined to be in a fact-checking mood every time they browse their social media networks. Many of us go to social media in our downtime to switch-off and wind down, meaning that some inaccurate information could be missed from time to time, especially when the content is more niche and may require a specific subject matter expert. Additionally, because Community Notes require review and ratings by other Community Notes contributors before being approved it’s hard not to wonder how long the process takes, and how much misinformation could be spread before the needed Community Note becomes visible.
Further reading: Is X a worthy LinkedIn competitor?
Where AI comes in
However, improvements are on the horizon — X has begun work on what it’s calling “AI Note Writers” that allow anyone to create their own AI Note Writer that can in time, earn the ability to propose Community Notes. X states that, “Not only does this have the potential to accelerate the speed and scale of Community Notes, rating feedback from the community can help develop AI agents that deliver increasingly accurate, less biased, and broadly helpful information — a powerful feedback loop.”
Which is a promising step towards using AI to improve the current Community Notes approach and take some of the mental load of us poor humans.
Looking ahead with optimism
Yes, there are some flaws when it comes to Community Notes. But with multiple platforms adopting Community Notes as their chosen method of social media moderation, and with AI making things simpler, Community Notes could be developing into a reliable method of content moderation over time. As individual platforms begin to give their own twist on things, and learn from one another, Community Notes should improve.