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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Dan Jervis-Bardy, Ben Doherty and Sarah Basford Canales

‘Trolling free-for-all’: Australian politicians and experts criticise Meta for ditching factchecking

Image of Meta logo and partial cutout of Mark Zuckerberg's head
Global experts have backed Australian concerns over Mark Zuckerberg’s decision to have Meta abandon factchecking on its platforms in the US, such as Facebook and Instagram. Photograph: Drew Angerer/AFP/Getty Images

Australian politicians and experts have expressed concern over Meta’s decision to abandon factchecking on its platforms 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”.

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