Tech
Facebook and Instagram get rid of fact checkers
Meta is abandoning the use of independent fact-checkers on Facebook and Instagram, replacing them with X-style “community notes” where commenting on the accuracy of posts is left to users.
In a video posted alongside a blog post by the company on Tuesday, chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said third-party moderators were “too politically biased” and it was “time to get back to our roots around free expression”.
Joel Kaplan, who is replacing Sir Nick Clegg as Meta’s head of global affairs, wrote that the company’s reliance on independent moderators was “well-intentioned” but had too often resulted in the censoring of users.
However, campaigners against hate speech online have reacted with dismay – and suggested the changed is really motivated by getting on the right side of Donald Trump.