The independent collection of safety organizations expressed their worries about the fact that Meta's platforms are no longer doing fact-checking.
The Meta Safety Advisory Council has sent a letter to the firm expressing its worries on the recent changes to its policies, which include the decision to put a stop to its fact-checking program. In it, the council stated that Meta's change in policy "risks prioritizing political ideologies over global safety imperatives." It emphasizes how Meta's status as one of the most powerful organizations in the world gives it the ability to shape not only online behavior but also the norms of society. According to the letter, "by dialing back protections for protected communities," the company is putting itself at risk of "normalizing harmful behaviors and undermining years of social progress."
According to Facebook's Help Center, the Meta Safety Advisory Council is made up of "independent online safety organizations and experts" from a variety of nations. The company was established in 2009 and seeks advice from its members on matters related to public safety.
Earlier this year, Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Meta, made an announcement about the company's significant change in how it handles moderation and speech. He also stated that the company is getting rid of "a bunch of restrictions on topics like immigration and gender that are just out of touch with mainstream discourse." In addition, he revealed that Meta is ending its third-party fact-checking program and implementing X-style Community Notes, which X's Lina Yaccarino had praised. Meta revised its hostile behavior policy to "allow allegations of mental illness or abnormality when based on gender or sexual orientation" shortly after his declaration. Additionally, it eliminated a guideline that forbade users from referring to women as household goods or property and from using the term "it" to describe transgender or non-binary persons.
The council states that it appreciates Meta's "ongoing efforts to address the most egregious and illegal harms" on its platforms. However, it also emphasizes that Meta should continue to prioritize addressing "ongoing hate against individuals or communities" because it has ripple effects that extend beyond its apps and websites. Additionally, because marginalized groups, like women, LGBTQIA+ communities, and immigrants, are disproportionately targeted online, Meta's policy revisions could remove any sense of safety and inclusion that these groups have on the company's platforms.
The council said that, although crowd-sourced methods like Community Notes can help combat disinformation, independent researchers have expressed doubts about how successful they are. This was in response to Meta's decision to discontinue its fact-checking program. For example, one report from last year stated that posts on X that contained inaccurate information about the election did not display the planned Community Notes changes. They even accumulated billions of views. The council added, "Fact-checking serves as a vital safeguard — particularly in regions of the world where misinformation fuels offline harm and as adoption of AI grows worldwide." "Meta has to make sure that new methods reduce risks all over the world."
