Google and Facebook are rolling out new tools to stop the spread of fake news. But some are wondering if they’ll work – or if the could lead to censorship of the internet.

CGTN’s Phil Lavelle reports from Los Angeles.

Once upon a time, you wanted to get the headlines, you’d buy a newspaper, or tune into a fairly limited number of TV and radio stations. It was easy to check their credibility and hard for fake news to gain any traction.

But nowadays, anyone, anywhere with a web connection is an author. Anyone with a cellphone and a social media account is a reader and potential distributor. And it seems lots of us are very eager to hit that ‘share’ button – without checking out who wrote the article in the first place.

Facebook and Google have announced strategies to stop the spread of fake stories, with warnings offered alongside legitimate stories. Fake stories, meanwhile, will slip down rankings so you’re less likely to see them.