Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has criticized the US government’s 2021 pressure on his platforms to remove certain COVID-19 content, calling it “wrong” in a recent letter to Congress.
The letter, released by Republicans on the committee and addressed to House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, touches on several key issues related to content moderation and election integrity.
In the letter, Zuckerberg expressed regret over not being more vocal against the government's demands, which included removing COVID-19-related humor. Mark emphasized that Meta should not alter its content standards due to governmental pressure and pledged to resist similar attempts in the future.
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As the 2024 US presidential election nears, Zuckerberg announced that Meta would not repeat its previous funding efforts for non-profits supporting electoral infrastructure. This decision comes after criticism from Republicans who viewed such donations as partisan.
Zuckerberg addressed Facebook’s handling of a controversial Hunter Biden story published by the New York Post, explaining that the story was temporarily downranked. At the same time, fact-checkers assessed its credibility amidst concerns of potential Russian disinformation.
He stated that Facebook has since revised its policies to prevent similar demotions during fact-checking processes.
Republicans have seen the letter as a significant victory for free speech amid ongoing scrutiny of social media companies' roles in moderating content and influencing political discourse.
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