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YouTube Bans ‘Birther’ Conspiracy Theories for 2020 Election

The Google video site said it will pull any videos that put forward false claims about whether candidates or elected officials are eligible to serve in office.

Isn’t this about a decade too late? YouTube has made clear “birtherism” will be banned from its platform during this year’s U.S. presidential election. In a blog posted Monday, ahead of the Iowa caucuses, the site said it will pull any videos that put forward false claims about whether candidates or elected officials are eligible to serve in office. The company’s announcement comes nine years after Donald Trump started claiming Barack Obama wasn’t born in the United States—he eventually admitted his theory was wrong toward the end of his 2016 presidential campaign. Elsewhere in the blog, YouTube said election-related “deepfake” videos would be banned, as well as anything that aims to mislead viewers about how to vote or take part in the 2020 Census. YouTube added it will punish users who attempt to artificially increase the number of views, likes, and comments on their videos.