Meta Announces End Of Fact-Checking Program

Meta’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced this Tuesday that the company will end its fact-checking program—provided by third parties—on its platforms Facebook, Instagram, and Threads.

Through an Instagram video, Zuckerberg explained that this decision has been made to “restore free expression” and that instead of fact-checkers, the platform will rely on user criteria through a feature similar to “Community Notes,” a collaborative system used by the social media platform X in which the users provide context.

“It’s time to get back to our roots around free expression,” said Zuckerberg in the video announcement.
“I want to make sure that people can share their beliefs and experiences on our platforms.”

Zuckerberg added that the content moderation system has made many mistakes, increased censorship, and that the third parties in charge of monitoring the information were “too politically biased.”

Analysts and multiple publications have considered the decision to be a response in alignment with Donald Trump’s upcoming administration. In 2024, Trump threatened Zuckerberg with imprisonment for life and accused him of conspiring against him in 2020. Both seem to have restored the relationship and Zuckerberg donated $1 million to Trump’s inauguration fund in December.

According to CNBC, Trump has also expressed his content with the removal of the fact-checking program. “Honestly, I think they’ve come a long way—Meta,” said Trump in a press release this Tuesday. When asked about this decision being taken after his threat, he said “Probably.”

Meta’s version of “Community Notes” will begin to roll out in the upcoming months in the United States.