A new wind is blowing on Facebook and Instagram: ‘US has become more conservative’

This article was last updated on January 9, 2025

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A new wind is blowing on Facebook and Instagram: ‘US has become more conservative’

Hate messages and incorrect information are among the “key problems” facing Facebook and Instagram, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in his review of 2018. During that period, the company took many steps to respond to years of criticism that it was area has done too little. Zuckerberg writes that he is proud of the progress the company is making.

Now things are turning around. Yesterday Zuckerberg announced that Meta – as the company behind Facebook and Instagram is now called – is adjusting its policy on what is and is not allowed. In the United States, the company will stop collaborating with fact checkers: independent organizations that assess whether messages may be incorrect.

Collaborating with fact checkers was precisely a measure with which Zuckerberg wanted to regain trust after a number of turbulent years. After Russian interference during the 2016 US presidential elections, Zuckerberg had to admit that his company had taken too little responsibility to prevent abuse on its platforms, such as the spread of fake news.

Mentally ill or abnormal

When it comes to what is and isn’t allowed on Facebook and Instagram, the company is removing “a lot of restrictions” on topics like immigration and gender, Zuckerberg said. For example, the new policy explicitly states that it is permitted to describe transgender people or homosexuality as ‘mentally ill’ or ‘abnormal’.

“What started as a movement to be more inclusive is increasingly being used to shut down opinions and exclude people with different ideas,” Zuckerberg said in the video message in which he announced the change of course. “It’s gone too far. I want to make sure people can share their beliefs on our platforms.”

America has become more conservative. Meta now clearly agrees with that.

Pieter Wolters, Radboud University

A new, conservative wind is blowing through Silicon Valley, says Paddy Leerssen, who researches social media at the University of Amsterdam. “We already saw that with Elon Musk, the owner of He points out that these adjustments coincide with the victory of Trump and the Republican Party.

“Immigration and gender are very political issues, on which the left and the right have very different positions. The policy affected conservative voices, and therefore the Republicans.”

An important signal to the Republicans is Zuckerberg’s announcement that employees who assess whether or not messages are acceptable no longer do so from the Democratic state of California – where many tech companies in the Silicon Valley are located – but from Texas, which is Republican. is.

“Zuckerberg explicitly refers to the changing political climate in his video,” says Pieter Wolters of Radboud University. He is an expert on rules for internet companies such as Meta. “America has become more conservative. Meta now clearly agrees with that.”

Meta explores European adaptations

Meta will first implement the change of course in the United States, but sources within the European Commission tell NOS that the company will too adjustments in Europe wants to do. In the European Union, new rules recently applied to major internet platforms such as Facebook and Instagram.

The European Digital Services Act (DSA) is about the balance between spreading illegal messages, such as terrorism and child abuse, and guaranteeing freedom of expression, say the two DSA experts. “Zuckerberg paints a simplified picture of European law,” says Leerssen. “It is too simplistic to say that the law requires censorship, or that the intention is to remove disinformation.”

“The problem,” says Wolters. “is that disinformation is often not illegal”. “Zuckerberg says that he is going to release certain restrictions. For example, only remove a message if it is certain that it is illegal or very serious. That is something that may also be rolled out in Europe. It is not necessarily prohibited to spread untruths about transgender people , as long as you don’t spread hate. Meta can do this without directly conflicting with the DSA.”

The European Commission will now assess whether Meta’s adjustments comply with the DSA. “That is something positive about this development,” says Leerssen. “We are now having a serious discussion about how we can tackle disinformation. The internet platforms face an almost impossible task. With the policy you always bother the progressive or the conservative camp.”