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| Version 4 | Version 5 |
|---|---|
| Facebook and Instagram get rid of fact checkers | Facebook and Instagram get rid of fact checkers |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| 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, external 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". | In a video posted alongside a blog post, external 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. | 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 change is really motivated by getting on the right side of Donald Trump. | |
| "Zuckerberg's announcement is a blatant attempt to cozy up to the incoming Trump administration – with harmful implications", said Ava Lee, from Global Witness, a campaign group which describes itself as seeking to hold big tech to account. | "Zuckerberg's announcement is a blatant attempt to cozy up to the incoming Trump administration – with harmful implications", said Ava Lee, from Global Witness, a campaign group which describes itself as seeking to hold big tech to account. |
| "Claiming to avoid "censorship" is a political move to avoid taking responsibility for hate and disinformation that platforms encourage and facilitate," she added. | |
| Emulating X | Emulating X |
| Meta's current fact checking programme, introduced in 2016, refers posts that appear to be false or misleading to independent organisations to assess their credibility. | Meta's current fact checking programme, introduced in 2016, refers posts that appear to be false or misleading to independent organisations to assess their credibility. |
| Posts flagged as inaccurate can have labels attached to them offering viewers more information, and be moved lower in users' feeds. | |
| That will now be replaced "in the US first" by community notes. | |
| Meta says it has "no immediate plans" to get rid of its third-party fact checkers in the UK or the EU. | |
| The new community notes system has been copied from X, which introduced it after being bought and renamed by Elon Musk. | |
| It involves people of different viewpoints agreeing on notes which add context or clarifications to controversial posts. | |
| "This is cool," he said of Meta's adoption of a similar mechanism. | |
| However the UK's Molly Rose Foundation described the announcement as a "major concern for safety online." | |
| "We are urgently clarifying the scope of these measures, including whether this will apply to suicide, self-harm and depressive content", its chairman Ian Russell said. | "We are urgently clarifying the scope of these measures, including whether this will apply to suicide, self-harm and depressive content", its chairman Ian Russell said. |
| "These moves could have dire consequences for many children and young adults." | "These moves could have dire consequences for many children and young adults." |
| Meta told the BBC it would consider content breaking its suicide and self-harm rules to be a "high severity" violation, and therefore subject to automated moderation systems. | |
| Fact-checking organisation Full Fact - which participates in Facebook's program for verifying posts in Europe - said it "refutes allegations of bias" made against its profession. | |
| The body's chief executive, Chris Morris, described the change as a "disappointing and a backwards step that risks a chilling effect around the world." | |
| 'A radical swing' | 'A radical swing' |
| Meta's blog post said it would also "undo the mission creep" of rules and policies -highlighting removal of restrictions on subjects including "immigration, gender and gender identity" - saying these have stemmed political discussion and debate. | Meta's blog post said it would also "undo the mission creep" of rules and policies -highlighting removal of restrictions on subjects including "immigration, gender and gender identity" - saying these have stemmed political discussion and debate. |
| "It's not right that things can be said on TV or the floor of Congress, but not on our platforms", it said. | "It's not right that things can be said on TV or the floor of Congress, but not on our platforms", it said. |
| The changes come as technology firms and their executives prepare for President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration on 20 January. | The changes come as technology firms and their executives prepare for President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration on 20 January. |
| Trump has previously been a vocal critic of Meta and its approach to content moderation, calling Facebook "an enemy of the people" in March 2024. | Trump has previously been a vocal critic of Meta and its approach to content moderation, calling Facebook "an enemy of the people" in March 2024. |
| But relations between the two men have since improved - Mr Zuckerberg dined at Trump's Florida estate in Mar-a-Lago in November. Meta has also donated $1m to an inauguration fund for Trump. | But relations between the two men have since improved - Mr Zuckerberg dined at Trump's Florida estate in Mar-a-Lago in November. Meta has also donated $1m to an inauguration fund for Trump. |
| "The recent elections also feel like a cultural tipping point towards, once again, prioritising free speech," said Mr Zuckerberg in Tuesday's video. | "The recent elections also feel like a cultural tipping point towards, once again, prioritising free speech," said Mr Zuckerberg in Tuesday's video. |
| Mr Kaplan replacing Sir Nick Clegg - a former Liberal Democrat deputy prime minister - as the company's president of global affairs has also been interpreted as a signal of the firm's shifting approach to moderation and its changing political priorities. | Mr Kaplan replacing Sir Nick Clegg - a former Liberal Democrat deputy prime minister - as the company's president of global affairs has also been interpreted as a signal of the firm's shifting approach to moderation and its changing political priorities. |
| Kate Klonick, associate professor of law at St John's University Law School, said the changes reflected a trend "that has seemed inevitable over the last few years, especially since Musk's takeover of X". | Kate Klonick, associate professor of law at St John's University Law School, said the changes reflected a trend "that has seemed inevitable over the last few years, especially since Musk's takeover of X". |
| "The private governance of speech on these platforms has increasingly become a point of politics," she told BBC News. | "The private governance of speech on these platforms has increasingly become a point of politics," she told BBC News. |
| Where companies have previously faced pressure to build trust and safety mechanisms to deal with issues like harassment, hate speech, and disinformation, a "radical swing back in the opposite direction" is now underway, she added. | Where companies have previously faced pressure to build trust and safety mechanisms to deal with issues like harassment, hate speech, and disinformation, a "radical swing back in the opposite direction" is now underway, she added. |