Meta Platforms—Meta eliminated third-party fact-checkers on Facebook and Instagram, replacing with community notes
On January 7, 2025, Meta announced it would end its third-party fact-checking program on Facebook and Instagram, replacing it with a community notes system similar to X (formerly Twitter). CEO Mark Zuckerberg stated fact-checkers had been 'too politically biased' and called for reducing 'censorship'. The change was announced two weeks before Trump's second inauguration.
Scoring Impact
| Topic | Direction | Relevance | Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Content Moderation | -against | primary | -1.00 |
| Misinformation | +toward | secondary | -0.50 |
| Overall incident score = | -0.846 | ||
Score = avg(topic contributions) × significance (critical ×2) × confidence (0.75)× agency (reactive ×0.75)
Evidence (3 signals)
Announced end of Meta's fact-checking program in favor of community notes
On January 7, 2025, Mark Zuckerberg announced Meta would eliminate fact-checkers on Facebook and Instagram, replacing them with community notes similar to X. He stated fact-checkers had been 'too politically biased' and called for reducing 'censorship'. The changes were announced just before Trump took office.
Washington Post reported Meta ending third-party fact-checking program in favor of community notes ahead of Trump inauguration
The Washington Post reported on January 7, 2025 that Meta was ending its third-party fact-checking program across Facebook, Instagram, and Threads, replacing it with a user-driven Community Notes system similar to X/Twitter. The report noted the move came as Zuckerberg sought to improve his relationship with Trump before the inauguration.
Meta official blog post announced elimination of fact-checkers and shift to community notes model
Meta published an official blog post titled 'More Speech and Fewer Mistakes' on January 7, 2025, announcing the end of its third-party fact-checking program. Zuckerberg stated fact-checkers had been 'too politically biased and have destroyed more trust than they've created.' The company also announced eliminating content policies on immigration and gender topics, moving trust and safety teams from California to Texas, and restoring political content in feeds.