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When Mark Zuckerberg announced Tuesday that Meta is shutting down its fact-checking program, the company promised “more speech and fewer mistakes.” But when The Federalist asked for details about changes to the company’s content moderation procedures, a Meta representative simply pointed to the press release and refused to comment on the record. 

The Federalist asked Meta for a phone call to ask questions about its announcement, a standard reporting necessity. The spokesperson declined. Then The Federalist asked the spokesperson via email to answer the following questions, and received no direct answers from the company spokesperson, who has previously represented Planned Parenthood and the Obama campaign.

Will the company remove strikes or demotions already imposed as a result of these fact checking systems, which it now admits are flawed?

Will Meta disclose to users the strikes and demotions placed on their accounts?

Is the company using algorithmic or artificial intelligence tools to limit the reach of speech or posts?

Is Meta taking steps to silence so-called “misinformation” now its fact-checking apparatus is gone? Is it performing any demotion or strikes against such content?

Is the company using any other means of hindering users’ reach, aside from actions strictly labeled “strikes” or “demotions”?

Is Meta pursuing restitution for media outlets and accounts that lost revenue under the failed fact-checking apparatus?

Will Meta release documents like the “Twitter Files,” and publish communications with agencies like the White House or CISA pressuring the company to demote or delete certain accounts?

The Meta representative declined to go on the record with The Federalist or directly answer any of the questions. Instead, the spokesperson pointed to a Jan. 7 press release, implying that reporters should regurgitate company PR instead of seeking deeper information. In the press release, the company claims it will “phase in community notes” in the “next couple of months,” and “get rid of our fact-checking control, stop demoting fact checked content and… use a much less obtrusive label…”

Meta has repeatedly displayed anti-conservative prejudice. For example, it directly censored The Federalist at least 11 times, suspended the Facebook account of the America First Policy Institute, and restricted the account of conservative Hillsdale College.

When asked why users should vote for Vice President Kamala Harris or former President Donald Trump, Meta AI told users positive things about the Democrat but negative things about the Republican. Research has shown that media bias can shift elections.

Zuckerberg, Meta’s founder and CEO, also directly poured $350 million through nonprofits into local election offices in 2020. The funding helped boost turnout in mostly Democrat areas, and enabled left-wing groups like the Center for Tech and Civic Life to meddle in local election processes.

That same year, the company engaged in government collusion to exert draconian control over public discussions online about a prudent Covid-19 response. It also caved to pressure from the FBI to censor the New York Post’s Hunter Biden laptop story as “Russian misinformation” — even though the story proved true. 

The Meta representative pointed The Federalist to the company’s dashboards that show government requests to obtain user data and restrict or remove content, but would not comment on the record whether the company will release specific communications about government attempts to silence Americans’ views.

Zuckerberg pledged this week to loosen speech restrictions on Meta platforms, but the company’s website still has a section on “combating misinformation.” The representative also pointed to Zuckerberg’s pledge to work with the incoming Trump administration to “push back” on international censorship.

The company’s history of blackballing Democrats’ political opponents, funding leftist causes, and lack of good-faith engagement with non-leftist media starkly contrast with Zuckerberg’s alleged about-face after yet another surprising Trump election victory.

Logan Washburn is a staff writer covering election integrity. He is a spring 2025 fellow of The College Fix. He graduated from Hillsdale College, served as Christopher Rufo’s editorial assistant, and has bylines in The Wall Street Journal, The Tennessean, and The Daily Caller. Logan is from Central Oregon but now lives in rural Michigan.