Hold Facebook accountable for its pro-censorship history.
Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Meta, recently took a moment to acknowledge some past mistakes regarding speech moderation on Facebook.
In a video shared on Tuesday, Zuckerberg announced Meta’s decision to eliminate its third-party fact-checking system, admitting that it was heavily influenced by leftist bias. Instead, he plans to implement a system similar to “community notes,” as seen on X. More details can be found here.
“We’re returning to our foundational principles of free expression on Facebook and Instagram,” he stated, acknowledging that the existing content moderation system had “stifled opinions and excluded individuals with differing viewpoints” and had “gone too far.”
This shift represents a significant victory for open discussion and serves as further evidence that the left’s firm grip on cultural domains is beginning to loosen.
Zuckerberg deserves credit for highlighting the global nature of the free speech battle, specifically pointing out that Europe is heading in the wrong direction: “The only way we can counter this global trend is with support from the US government.”
However, Zuckerberg has a lot of ground to cover; a mere “sorry about that!” won’t suffice.
He also cannot place all the blame on obscure “fact-checkers.”
It was his own executives who made the decision to ban Donald Trump and comply with pressures from the FBI and other entities within the Biden Justice Department. These forces pressed the company to silence accounts that shared content misaligned with the Democrats’ agenda, including The Post’s reporting on Hunter Biden.
Although Zuck now portrays himself as a champion of free speech, Facebook previously touted its actions of labeling 50 million COVID-related posts with warnings, even those suggesting the virus was engineered—a theory that is now supported by substantial evidence.
Up until Zuckerberg faced scrutiny from Congress over Facebook’s content moderation practices, the platform framed censorship as a public service.
It wasn’t about suppressing free speech! Rather, it was about “preventing the spread of misinformation” and ensuring “people are safe from harmful content.”
Given the massive reach of Facebook and Instagram, which significantly influence public perception, Zuckerberg’s correction towards a pro-speech stance is indeed a positive development.
Nonetheless, Meta’s extended campaign to suppress speech to maintain favor with the Biden administration and the left at large has left consequences that cannot be remedied with a simple apology.
Let’s not allow him to evade accountability so easily.
