FACEBOOK is to introduce new measures to combat the rise of 'fake news'.

In December it announced it would bring in an external company to help 'flag up' any post in which the facts were disputed.

When trying to post a story, some users in the United States reported a message popping up, telling them the truth of the story had been called into question.

In mid-December last year, Facebook announced it would begin flagging fake news stories with the help of users and five independent fact-checkers: ABC News, Associated Press, FactCheck.org, Politifact and Snopes.

This move came in the wake of the US election which drew to light the huge role Facebook now plays in how people get their information.

In a post on his own Facebook page announcing the changes, the company's Mark Zuckerberg admitted the business has a “greater responsibility” to the public than the average “distributor of news”.

Let us know if you think the 'fake news checker' is a good idea. Will it make us more informed?

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