The day following the certification of the 2024 election, Meta, the parent company of Instagram, Facebook, Threads and WhatsApp, announced that it is removing independent fact-checkers on its sites. The company will instead use a community notes system similar to X, where users will add context to posts. This system is slower and less reliable than fact-checkers.
In a post, Meta founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the move away from independent fact-checkers is to move the platforms away from “political bias” and “censorship.” A similar claim was made by X CEO Elon Musk when he took over the company in 2022 and removed moderation.
Amid consistent disinformation coming from the incoming Trump administration, conspiracy theories and false claims surrounding the raging wildfires in Southern California and a rise in AI videos and images, Meta’s decision shows a willingness to ignore the truth and bend to the will of right-wing politicians. The company even donated $1 million to the Trump inauguration, as well as other tech giants such as Amazon.
In a recent episode of the CBC podcast “Commotion,” journalist CT Jones said, “What it feels like is Meta cares more about making sure that they don't have any rules that exist that they'll have to inevitably punish Trump or his incoming cabinet for. This feels like an entire compilation of things that people who Trump is putting into power have already said.”
In addition to removing fact checkers, the company also announced it will pull back restrictions on topics such as gender and immigration, which will likely lead to a rise in hate speech and disinformation on these topics. Between January 2022 and June 2023, transphobic slurs rose 260% while homophobic and racist posts rose 30-42% on X, according to a study by USC.
Ironically, Meta introduced the fact-checking system to help curb Russian interference in the 2016 election. The company went under scrutiny from President-elect Donald Trump for too much censorship of free speech. Trump was also banned from Instagram and Facebook for false claims about the 2020 election until January 2023.
The bending to the will of right-wing politicians from tech executives boils down to one word: deregulation. As tech giants continue to swallow up smaller companies, monopolization claims grow. Meta, Apple and Amazon, among others, have faced antitrust lawsuits from the government. So, getting into Trump’s inner circle allows these corporations to avoid regulations.
Trump’s decision to appoint Musk to a cabinet position signals a move to a plutocratic government; the rich have outsized political influence. Executives such as Zuckerberg, Apple’s Tim Cook and Amazon’s Jeff Bezos are likely cozying up to the incoming administration to exert influence and power without regulation. It also helps their case that incoming Vice President JD Vance has ties to Silicon Valley.
By removing independent fact checkers from its platforms, Meta is pushing the social media landscape toward a rise in disinformation and conspiracy theories in an effort with other Silicon Valley giants to pander to Trump and his political allies.
Ethan Herx is a sophomore studying photojournalism at Ohio University. Please note that the views and opinions of the columnists do not reflect those of The Post. Want to share your thoughts? Let Ethan know by emailing or tweeting them at eh481422@ohio.edu or @ethanherx.
