Misinformation – REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS ALERTS

09 Aug

The Next Infodemic: Abortion Misinformation

RandyLatest NewsAbortion Care, Healthcare, Misinformation, Reproductive rights

Approximately 20% of women in the United States have had an abortion. On June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization allowed a Mississippi law that proposed to make abortion illegal after 15 weeks to stand, which effectively overturned Roe v. Wade, a 1973 SCOTUS decision that affirmed the right to have an abortion under the 14th amendment . With the reversal of Roe v. Wade, a perfect storm of factors is driving an abortion infodemic including a confusing and rapidly changing legislative landscape, the proliferation of abortion disinformants, lax efforts by internet…

15 Feb

JD Vance abortion buffer zone comments ‘dangerous’

MollyInternational, Latest News, United StatesAbortion Care, Abortion Rights, Buffer Zones, Health care, Health Care Providers, Misinformation, Reproductive Health Care, Scotland, United States, Vance, Vice President

"The American Vice-President JD Vance has been accused of "spreading misinformation" about buffer zones at abortion clinics in Scotland. In a speech at the Munich Security Conference Vance claimed people who live within safe access zones had been sent letters by the Scottish government warning them about praying within their homes. The Safe Access Zones Act came into force last September and prevents protestors gathering within 200m (656ft) of clinics that perform abortions...."

29 Jan

Activists whose videos accused Planned Parenthood of selling fetal remains plead to felony

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion Misinformation, Anti-abortion, California, Court decision, Felony charges, Misinformation, Planned Parenthood, sensationalism, United States

“Two anti-abortion activists who made sensational videos of Planned Parenthood officials nearly a decade ago pleaded no contest this week to a felony count of illegally recording someone without consent. David Daleiden and Sandra Merritt secretly filmed Planned Parenthood executives in California and edited the clips in a way that purported to show them selling fetal remains. Monday’s plea deal and felony conviction ends a criminal case that has dragged through the court system since 2017….”

19 Oct

Opponents of Missouri Abortion Rights Amendment Turn to Anti-Trans Messaging and Misinformation

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion Rights Amendment, Anti-abortion, Anti-Trans, Billboards, Misinformation, Missouri, United States

"The billboards have popped up along both Interstates 55 and 170 around St. Louis. They’re along I-70 between Columbia and St. Charles, in central Missouri. And there’s one across from a shopping center in Cape Girardeau, along the Mississippi River in the state’s southeast corner. In fact, as the Nov. 5 election approaches, motorists can see the billboards all over Missouri. Each one spreads claims designed to undermine support for an abortion rights amendment that was placed on next month’s ballot through the state’s initiative petition process. Some billboards warn voters to “STOP Child Gender Surgery,” even though the amendment doesn’t…

31 Jul

How Meta Created a Wild West for Abortion Misinformation

MollyInternational, United StatesFacebook, International, Meta, Misinformation, Moderation, Private Company, Social media, United States

"...Now these posts are at the center of Oversight Board cases that will establish guidelines for how Meta should moderate abortion-related content. Specifically, the board—a panel of 22 researchers, advocates, and policymakers who advise Meta on content moderation—is considering how the tech giant “should treat content that uses the word ‘kill’ while discussing abortion and its legality.” But beyond the specific moderation issues within the cases, the board will also evaluate how Meta’s enforcement practices shape the conversation about abortion in America. The outcome could have profound implications for abortion access. The Oversight Board is expected to announce its recommendations (shaped in…

20 Jun

‘Not based on science’: US confronts abortion ‘reversal’ myths

MollyUnited StatesAbortion Care, abortion reversal, Healthcare, Misinformation, United States

"Wracked by guilt after taking an abortion pill, a sobbing woman calls a US hotline. It recommends a "reversal" treatment to save the fetus—despite medical warnings that it is potentially life-threatening. Misinformation about medical termination appears to have skyrocketed since last June, when the Supreme Court overturned the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that guaranteed a constitutional right to abortion...."