Zuckerberg's Decision to End Fact-Checking and Add Dana White to Board Draws Criticism from Meta Employees

• On Tuesday, Meta employees expressed their dissatisfaction with the company's decision to halt third-party fact-checking on its services two weeks before President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration on their internal forum.
• One worker stated that Meta's actions suggest that facts are no longer important and that they are equating this with a triumph for free speech.
• The UFC CEO and longtime Trump friend, Dana White, has been appointed to the board of Meta, a day after the company announced the news.

On Tuesday, employees expressed their dissatisfaction with the company's decision to halt third-party fact-checking on its services two weeks before President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration on their internal forum.

Employees of the company expressed their worries following Joel Kaplan's announcement of content policy changes on Workplace, the internal communications platform.

Kaplan expressed optimism that the changes would enable us to uphold our fundamental commitment to free expression, as stated in a post reviewed by CNBC.

The content policy announcement was preceded by a series of decisions aimed at satisfying the incoming administration. On Monday, Meta appointed UFC CEO Dana White, a close friend of Trump, to its board, and the company revealed last month that it had pledged $1 million to Trump's inauguration.

Kaplan announced that Meta will scrap its fact-checking program and shift to a user-generated system like X's Community Notes. He also stated that Meta will lift restrictions on certain topics and focus its enforcement on illegal and high-severity violations while giving users "a more personalized approach to political content."

One worker expressed their concern about the decision, stating that it seems Meta is emphasizing that facts are no longer important and that this is being viewed as a victory for free speech.

An employee remarked that the policy change of absolving ourselves from the responsibility to create a safe and respectful platform is a disheartening direction to take. Other employees expressed worry about the potential impact on discussions around sensitive topics such as immigration, gender identity, and gender, which one employee believed could lead to an increase in racist and transphobic content.

An employee expressed fear that "we're opening up a Pandora's box by facilitating the proliferation of falsehoods."

Some Meta workers praised the company's decision to end third-party fact checking, with one worker stating that X's Community Notes feature is a more accurate representation of the truth.

Would it be beneficial for the company to disclose the consequences of the early years that led to the establishment of a third-party fact-checking program and if the new policies would prevent a similar situation from occurring again?

In 2023, Meta's massive layoffs included the cancellation of an internal fact-checking project, CNBC reported. This project would have allowed third-party fact-checkers like the Associated Press and Reuters, as well as credible experts, to verify the content of flagged articles by commenting on them.

Although Meta announced the end of its fact-checking program on Tuesday, the company had already been gradually reducing its efforts. In September, a spokesperson for the AP told CNBC that the news agency's "fact-checking agreement with Meta ended back in January" 2024.

On Monday, following the announcement of White's appointment to the board, employees expressed their dissatisfaction, posed queries, and shared humorous remarks on Workplace, as per CNBC's review of posts.

In 2023, Dana White, who has led UFC since 2001, became embroiled in controversy after a video published by TMZ showed him slapping his wife at a New Year's Eve party in Mexico. White issued a public apology, and his wife, Anne White, issued a statement to TMZ, calling it an isolated incident.

Workplace commentators joked about the possibility of performance reviews being conducted in a mixed martial arts style.

John Elkann, CEO of Exor, was also appointed to Meta's board, in addition to White.

What value can autos and entertainment executives bring to Meta, and does White's addition align with the company's values? One post suggested that the new board appointments could aid in political alliances but may also impact the company culture unintentionally or negatively.

According to CNBC, posts from the internal app that contained comments alluding to White's personal history were flagged and removed from the discussion.

An employee from Meta's Internal Community Relations team posted a reminder on Workplace about the company's "community engagement expectations" policy, commonly known as CEE.

"The community has flagged several comments for review, and it's crucial that we maintain a respectful work environment where everyone can perform at their best."

The CEE does not align with insulting, criticizing, or antagonizing colleagues or Board members, as stated by the internal community relations team member.

Numerous employees replied to the message stating that even courteous comments, which were critical, were taken down, resulting in a corporate form of suppression.

One worker expressed support for "women and all voices" because critical comments were being removed.

Meta declined to comment.

— CNBC's Salvador Rodriguez contributed to this report.

Meta appoints Dana White, John Elkann, and Charlie Songhurst to its board of directors.