Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg revealed that government officials reacted angrily when Facebook initially resisted pressure to censor Covid-19 memes.
According to Zuckerberg, Facebook initially refused to censor satirical memes about Covid-19 vaccines until facing intense pressure, including verbal abuse and threats, from US government officials. He discussed this during a recent appearance on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast, suggesting the censorship stemmed from government pressure.
Zuckerberg questioned the legality of this pressure, stating, “I don’t think that the pushing for social media companies to censor stuff was legal,” and highlighting the contrast between government actions and the First Amendment’s protection of free speech.
He argued that while private companies’ content moderation isn’t restricted by the First Amendment, the government’s actions are.
The contested content involved a meme referencing a scene from “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” suggesting future vaccine injury lawsuits. President Biden’s administration strongly advocated for vaccine mandates and criticized social media for spreading what they deemed “misinformation.”
Then-White House press secretary Jen Psaki acknowledged flagging posts for Facebook and suggested social media platforms should coordinate content moderation policies. The Center for Countering Digital Hate claimed the White House used their research on “misinformation superspreaders” to inform its actions.
Facebook responded by highlighting their pro-vaccine stance and reporting the removal of millions of posts deemed as misinformation by their fact-checkers.
Zuckerberg recently ended Facebook’s fact-checking program, citing political bias and its counterproductive effects on diverse opinions. He stated, “What started as a movement to be more inclusive has increasingly been used to shut down opinions and shut out people with different ideas, and it’s gone too far,”
Despite donating heavily to Democrats in 2020, Zuckerberg did not donate the following year. He also visited President Trump to mend fences and contribute to his inauguration fund.
When asked about the censorship of the Hunter Biden laptop story, which led to the New York Post facing restrictions on Twitter and Facebook, Zuckerberg avoided a direct response.
Zuckerberg confirmed that Meta provided censorship-related documents to the House Judiciary Committee, referencing a report made public by Representative Jim Jordan (R-Ohio).
Regarding accountability for those involved, Zuckerberg simply stated, “Well, they lost the election.”