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Debunk fake news and get paid by China's top news platform

The ByteDance platform takes a unique approach to help clean up online content in China

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Debunk fake news and get paid by China's top news platform
Masha Borak
This article originally appeared on ABACUS

December 6, 2018: Updated to clarify Helo's presence in India.

Fake news is everywhere on social platforms. Facebook's plan to fight involves a War Room bringing together employees from multiple teams.

But China's most popular news aggregator, Jinri Toutiao, has a different approach -- cash.

Breaking down China's most popular news app, Toutiao

ByteDance's Jinri Toutiao launched a initiative called 100 (or Rumor Zero Zero) that will offer cash rewards between US$40 and US$440 to the 100 best articles that can help quash rumors online -- a problem that's plagued the site since the beginning.

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It comes amid pressure put on platform operators by the Chinese government’s sweeping crackdown on online content. With the world’s biggest internet population and largest number of mobile subscribers, China has seen the central government tighten its grip on all online content, from news and celebrity gossip to off-color jokes.

The app’s management has banned 9,026 accounts and intercepted more than 500,000 articles containing rumors since May, through the use of both human censors and AI technology. It has so far commended several media outlets, such as the People’s Daily and online education site Guokr, for helping battle the spread of pseudoscience online.
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ByteDance, which also owns short video-streaming platform TikTok, is also battling online rumors and misinformation outside China. Its international products, Topbuzz and Helo, have also come under fire for fake news. India-based Helo, for example, was accused of being used as a platform to spread religious hate and instigate violence in the country.
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