Former US government disinformation fighter accuses Zuckerberg of 'bending the knee' to Trump as Meta ends factchecking
Nina Jankowicz, a former homeland security official tasked with fighting disinformation, said Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg’s decision to end factchecking on his platforms was a “bending of the knee” to Donald Trump.
“Let’s be clear – the factcheckers have not ‘been’ politically biased as Zuckerberg suggests, but have been *perceived as such* because of politically motivated efforts to smear them, one that Zuck is now participating in and capitulating to,” said Jankowicz, who know leads the American Sunlight Project, an anti-disinformation group.
“Zuck’s announcement is a full bending of the knee to Trump and an attempt to catch up to Musk in his race to the bottom. The implications are going to be widespread. Factchecking was not a panacea to disinformation on Facebook but it was an important part of moderation. Bumpers are fully off the lane now. Fact checks don’t suppress speech, fact checks are actually more speech.”
She also noted that the end of factchecking has implications for news outlets worldwide, as several had deals with Meta to assess content on its platforms:Facebook has already contributed to the demise of journalism and this will be the final nail in the coffin; newsrooms – especially outside the US where subscription models are difficult sells – get grants from Facebook to provide factchecks. That money allows them to do other journalism!