On Wednesday 8 January, the European Commission took note of the Meta group’s decision to reverse its internal policy of combating disinformation in the United States by replacing the ‘fact checkers’ service with the collaborative ‘community notes’ function.
Working with ‘fact checkers’ can be considered as “an effective way to counter systemic risks stemming from very large platforms and linked to disinformation and electoral processes”, but “we are not saying what content moderation policy” should be put in place, as long as this policy proves to be “effective”, said Thomas Régnier, the EU institution’s spokesperson responsible for digital issues.
If Mark Zuckerberg’s group, which is responsible for platforms such as Facebook and Instagram, decides to embark on such a development with a potentially critical impact on users in the EU, he added, it will have to send the Commission “a prior risk assessment analysis” as a very large platform subject to the provisions of the ‘DSA’ regulation. He assured that the Commission will do everything in its power to ensure that companies providing services comply with the rules in force in the EU.
When Mr Zuckerberg announced Meta’s decision, “he made explicit reference to the EU’s efforts to protect users and society”, noted MEP Alex Saliba (S&D, Maltese), who believes that the change in policy at Meta, a signatory to the European Code of Practice on Disinformation, raises “serious concerns” about the group’s obligations under European rules.
“The new European Commission (...) must hold Meta and other tech giants accountable, preventing them from using the Trump election as a pretext to reset online regulations in the US and globally”, said Saliba. In his view, “the EU’s reputation as a global leader in tech regulation” is at stake.
On the other hand, Assita Kanko (ECR, Belgian) welcomed Meta’s decision. “Freedom of expression is a precious asset. Meta has recognised the deep flaws in the current content moderation system, which is plagued by political bias and a worrying erosion of public trust. Mark Zuckerberg’s decision is a decisive break from top-down censorship and empowers individuals to take ownership of the online conversation”, she said, calling on the Commission to look at the issue and propose updating existing EU law. Questioned on French radio about Mr Zuckerberg’s announcement and the political activism of the owner of social network X, Elon Musk, the French Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jean-Noël Barrot, called on the Commission to apply “with the utmost firmness” the regulations that the EU has adopted “to protect our public space”. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)