YouTube and Facebook have banned the documentary “Planet Lockdown,” which has been circulating on social media since last December. The two social media platforms claim the film contains coronavirus misinformation.
The film contains multiple claims deemed by public health organizations as false. The documentary also makes claims of voter fraud in the November 2020 presidential election.
According to CrowdTangle, a social media tracking tool, the film had garnered more than 20 million social media engagements between December and January. It only came to the attention of social media companies after Media Matters for America, a pro-censorship media watchdog, published a story about it on Monday.
Following the report by Media Matters, social media platforms, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and even TikTok, started removing clips of the film.
Crowdfunding platform GoFundMe also canceled a fundraiser raising money for the production cost of the film. According to an image captured by Internet Archive, the fundraiser had raised over $8,400.
The makers of the film defended, it arguing that it helped people debate legitimate health concerns on current COVID-19 restrictions.
“What if these guidances do more harm than good?” the team argued in an email sent to The Washington Post. “Shouldn't we be able to have a public discussion on a subject that affects us all so dearly??
