Meta platforms ditching third party fact-checking in US

Meta is abandoning the use of third-party reviews on Facebook and Instagram and will replace it with X-type “group posts”, where comments on the accuracy of posts are left to users.

In a video posted alongside it blog post and the company on Tuesday, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said “it’s time to return to our roots in freedom”.

Joel Kaplan, who succeeding Sir Nick Clegg as Meta’s head of international affairs, wrote that the company’s reliance on independent directors was “well-intentioned” but went too far.

“Innocuous information is censored,” he wrote, adding that Meta “often undermines the very liberal voices we seek to support.”

The move to the public records system will happen “in the U.S. first” in the coming months, a senior technology expert says — he did not say when or if it will be announced elsewhere.

The system – which Meta says it has seen “work on X” – sees people of different opinions agree on posts that add context or explanation to conflicting statements.

The company’s blog said it would “change the trend” of laws and policies – highlighting the lifting of restrictions on topics including “immigration, gender and gender identity” – saying it had sparked political debate and controversy.

“We are removing a number of restrictions on topics such as immigration, gender identity and gender that are often discussed in the political arena,” it said.

“It is not right that things can be said on TV or under Congress, but not on our platforms”.

The changes come as tech companies and their executives prepare for the inauguration of President Donald Trump on January 20.

Trump has previously criticized Meta and its approach to content control.

He called Facebook “the enemy of the people” in March 2024.

But the relationship between the two men has been good – Mr Zuckerberg dined at Trump’s Florida estate at Mar-a-Lago in November.

Meta has also donated $1m to Trump’s opening fund.

“The recent election feels like a tipping point for reestablishing free speech,” Zuckerberg said in a video on Tuesday.

Mr Kaplan’s replacement of Sir Nick Clegg – a former Liberal Democrat deputy prime minister – as the company’s global president is also interpreted by many experts as a sign of a shift in corporate governance and political change.

In a statement announcing his resignation on January 2, Sir Nick said his successor was “the right man for the right job at the right time”.