A Growing Problem for Platforms
Meta says it has already removed around 10 million Facebook profiles this year for impersonation, mostly targeting copycats trying to ride the success of well-known creators. Another half a million accounts were flagged for fake engagement and spam-like behavior. Some had their posts throttled, others saw their comments demoted to limit reach.
Now, the company plans to go further. Any account that regularly reposts material, whether videos, photos, or text, without meaningful input could lose access to monetization tools. Those posts might also disappear from users’ feeds, with visibility sharply reduced. In cases where duplicate content is detected, Facebook may start linking the reposted material back to the original, letting viewers find the source with a single tap.
Not Just Spam, but Slop
While Meta didn’t call it out by name, the announcement arrives amid growing concern over what some creators are calling “AI slop.” This low-quality content, often stitched together from images and video clips with computer-generated narration, has flooded platforms in recent months. With tools like text-to-video now widely available, it’s easier than ever to churn out clips with very little human input.
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Meta’s guidance hints at this trend without spelling it out. The company warned against stitching together random clips or tossing on a watermark and calling it new. It pushed for “authentic storytelling,” saying creators should focus on original ideas rather than spinning up empty videos that barely hold attention.
Captions, too, are getting a closer look. Meta noted that video captions should meet a certain standard, which likely means AI auto-captions aren’t going to cut it unless they’re manually cleaned up.
Changes Coming Gradually
The company says the rollout will take time. Creators won’t lose monetization overnight, but those who rely on recycled material might start noticing their reach shrink. Facebook’s Professional Dashboard will now include new insights at the post level, giving creators a way to see how content is performing and whether anything is being restricted.
Those who run pages or professional profiles will also find clearer notices about potential penalties in the app’s Support screen. It’s a shift toward more transparency, though the bigger challenge may be how well Meta applies the rules without overstepping.
Long-Running Complaints Still Unaddressed
The update lands as Meta continues to face pushback over how its moderation systems work. A growing number of users say they’ve been locked out of accounts by mistake, often with no human review or support. One petition asking Meta to fix this issue has already gathered close to 30,000 signatures. Many of the signers are small business owners who rely on the platform for visibility and income.
So far, Meta hasn’t publicly responded to those concerns, despite headlines and growing criticism from high-profile creators. For now, the company appears more focused on curbing content abuse tied to monetization, especially in cases where users try to pass off copied content as their own.
Looking Ahead
Whether this new approach will help clean up Facebook’s feed is still an open question. Meta’s policy updates have often lagged behind user trends, but the latest changes show it’s trying to keep pace with how fast AI is changing the content landscape.
With the company pulling back from fact-checking in favor of crowd-sourced notes, similar to what X uses, it’s also moving toward a more hands-off style of moderation. That could be a smart move, or it could open new problems down the line.
Either way, creators who depend on Facebook to earn a living will want to watch these changes closely. The line between original and unoriginal content just got a little sharper, and Meta seems ready to hold it.
Notes: This post was edited/created using GenAI tools. Image: DIW-Aigen.
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