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US President Joe Biden has strongly condemned the decision of Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, to abandon its fact-checking programme and move to a model where users assess the authenticity of publications themselves. Biden called the decision “shameful” and “contrary to America’s core values,” The New York Times reports.
“We’re committed to the truth, even if it hasn’t always been easy. The idea that a billionaire can buy a platform and decide that nothing will be checked now is troubling,” Biden said at the White House.
Freedom of speech or political bias?
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, explained the decision as a desire to support freedom of speech, stressing that fact-checking had “become politically biased”. At the same time, Zuckerberg announced the relocation of Meta’s content moderation team from California, which traditionally supports Democrats, to Republican Texas.
The move sparked a wave of criticism, as Meta has been accused of spreading disinformation before. Biden recalls that back in 2021, he called social media “people killers” for their role in spreading fake data about COVID-19.
Conflict with the Biden government
Zuckerberg, in turn, accused the Biden administration of “brutal pressure”. In an interview with Joe Rogan’s popular conservative podcast, he said that during the pandemic, Meta had been subjected to aggressive government interference, including calls to remove content that he said was “truthful”.
“People from the Biden administration were calling our teams and yelling at them. It was an extremely difficult period,” Zuckerberg said.
Political intrigue
This situation has also become another battleground between Democrats and Republicans. Donald Trump, who recently praised Meta’s decision, said that it was made because of his pressure. “I told Zuckerberg I would shut down his company after Facebook blocked my account in 2021,” Trump said.
Meta’s decision, which has caused a wide outcry, once again highlights the difficulties in balancing freedom of speech, the fight against disinformation and political neutrality in the digital age.
