By: Richard Kim, Contributing Writer

In early January, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that Meta would be discontinuing its fact-checking program on its social media platforms in the United States, replacing it with a system similar to Community Notes on X. This change would grant contributors the ability to make corrections or provide context under potentially misleading posts. Notes may appear under posts if a diverse set of users agrees on their accuracy, altering how Facebook and Instagram operate.

“We need credible people fact-checking,” said Kevin Nguyen, a senior majoring in biomedical sciences. “I don’t think that regular people can do that.”

“I’m not sure if community notes will be better,” said Lou Baldon, a freshman majoring in marketing. “I see a lot of misinformation. It’s hard to tell [what’s real], especially with AI.”

Previously, Meta employed a program that algorithmically flagged posts deemed to be misleading. This program, however, led to too many mistakes and too many users being wrongfully penalized, according to Zuckerberg. He admitted that this contributed to the erosion of public trust in his company.

This change has been widely viewed as an attempt by Zuckerberg to gain favor with the newly inaugurated Trump administration. Facebook has long been criticized and accused of engaging in censorship. Zuckerberg seemed to confirm these fears last August when he stated that the Biden administration had pressured Meta into removing content it deemed to be spreading misinformation, particularly in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic. Facebook also acted quickly to remove President Trump’s account following the storming of the United States Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

“There used to be a standard,” said JP Sylvester, a senior majoring in digital film and television production. “There’s a lot of deliberate misinformation and disinformation meant to distract the public. Perhaps there needs to be something like the fairness doctrine that social media sites need to abide by.”

Zuckerberg sees the 2024 United States presidential election as a cultural tipping point that influencs his decision to reorient Meta towards upholding free expression. He stated his desire to work with Trump to counter foreign governments calling for more censorship. Notably, he donated $1 million towards Trump’s inauguration services and attended the gathering with numerous other tech CEOs.

In his statement, Zuckerberg announced that Facebook would move its content moderation team from California to Texas. Additionally, Meta will follow numerous other companies in rolling back their diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in light of the Trump administration’s executive actions to end such programs in the federal government.

Another change that seemed to signal Meta’s politically rightward shift relates to how it will now moderate LGBTQ+ content. Facebook will no longer remove posts that allege mental illness or abnormality when based on gender or sexual orientation, citing differing political and religious views on transgenderism and homosexuality.

“There needs to be oversight to keep hate to a minimum,” said Madison Williams, a junior majoring in biology.

Attempts were made to find an opposing viewpoint, but none were available at the time of publication. If you would like to voice another opinion on the matter, contact thevanguard@southalabama.edu.

It remains to be seen what effects this shift will have on Meta’s company culture and reputation. As of now, these changes will only affect Meta’s operations in the United States.