‘Trolling free-for-all’: experts back Australian concerns over Meta ditching factchecking on US platforms | Australian politics

Global experts have backed Australian concerns over Meta’s decision to abandon factchecking on its platforms in the US, such as Facebook and Instagram, saying the move would “turbocharge” the spread of lies and hate speech around the world.

Meta’s billionaire founder, Mark Zuckerberg, announced overnight Australia-time that the company’s factchecking programs would be scrapped. In a video message, Zuckerberg vowed to prioritise free speech after the return of Donald Trump to the White House and said that, starting in the US, he would “get rid of factcheckers and replace them with community notes similar to X”.

Meta has been accused of caving to political pressure from the incoming Trump administration in the US.

More political content will be pushed on to the platforms while certain restrictions will be removed for subjects including immigration and gender, under changes announced by the tech billionaire.

The Australian Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young said Meta’s decision to abandon all factchecking would create a “free-for-all on misinformation, disinformation, abuse and trolling”.

In the UK, Imran Ahmed, the founder and chief executive of the Center for Countering Digital Hate, said Meta’s decision would cause “real-world harm”.

“By abandoning its factchecking program in favour of a discredited ‘community notes’ system, Meta is turbocharging the spread of unchallenged online lies, worsening the spread of hate, and creating more risks to our communities, democracy, public health, and the safety of our kids.”

Ahmed said Meta had effectively abdicated its responsibility to try to prevent the spread of misinformation, hate speech and violent online content.

“Meta is now saying it’s up to you to spot the lies on its platforms, and that it’s not their problem if you can’t tell the difference, even if those lies, hate, or scams end up hurting you.

“Rather than stepping up to the challenge of responsible platform governance, Meta is retreating from accountability. This is a huge step back for online safety, transparency, and accountability, and it could have terrible offline consequences in the form of real-world harm.”

Director of the International Fact-Checking Network, Angie Drobnic Holan, based in Washington DC, rejected as a canard the allegation that factcheckers had been biased in their work.

“That attack line comes from those who feel they should be able to exaggerate and lie without rebuttal or contradiction.

“Factchecking journalism has never censored or removed posts: it’s added information and context to controversial claims, and it’s debunked hoax content and conspiracy theories. The factcheckers used by Meta follow a Code of Principles requiring nonpartisanship and transparency.”

Holan said Meta’s decision had come in the wake of “extreme political pressure” from the incoming Trump administration and its supporters.

“This decision will hurt social media users who are looking for accurate, reliable information to make decisions about their everyday lives and interactions with friends and family.”

Meta’s overhaul comes just days out from the inauguration of the US president-elect, Donald Trump, with whom Zuckerberg has vowed to work to fight foreign governments attempting to censor online content.

Zuckerberg has recently sought to repair a tumultuous relationship with Trump – who once threatened Zuckerberg that he would “spend the rest of his life in prison” if he interfered with the 2024 election. Zuckerberg visited Trump after his election win in November, and oversaw a US$1m Meta donation to Trump’s inauguration fund.

Elon Musk, the owner of X, is already part of Trump’s inner circle.

“The recent elections also feel like a cultural tipping point towards, once again, prioritising speech,” Zuckerberg said in a video posted to social media.

“So, we’re going to get back to our roots and focus on reducing mistakes, simplifying our policies and restoring free expression on our platforms.”

Hanson-Young, the Greens’ communications spokesperson, said the changes were “very dangerous”.

“It’s going to mean a free-for-all on misinformation, disinformation, abuse and trolling,” she told ABC’s RN Breakfast.

“I think this is a very, very dangerous move at a time when members of the community, parents, young people, women in particular, are increasingly concerned of the unsafe environment on these big platforms.”

Australia is already in the crosshairs of Zuckerberg and Musk after it passed world-first legislation to ban under-16s from accessing their platforms.

The federal government is also introducing a new scheme to force digital platforms, including Meta, to pay publishers for Australian news.

Speaking on Wednesday, the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, signalled that the federal government would stand firm against any potential blowback from Trump to its social media crackdown.

“The social media ban is an Australian policy in the interests of young Australians, Australian families,” he told ABC News Breakfast.

“And we say to Australian parents: we’ve got your back.

“We’ve listened, we’ve engaged with you on this. This is a sensible reform that has passed the parliament and is now Australian law.”