The International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) reacted Thursday to this idea that fact-checkers have been too politically oriented and have contributed more to reducing trust than they have improved it: ” This is false and we want to re-establish the truth, both for the current context and for History.” The IFCN is a network that brings together more than 130 organizations, including the AFP. The IFCN also estimated that ending Meta’s worldwide fact-checking program would cause “real harm.” “If Meta decides to shut down the program worldwide, it is almost certain that real harm will result in many places,” the network said. Among the more than a hundred countries with a similar program, some are “very vulnerable to disinformation which causes political instability, interference in elections, mass violence and even genocides”, adds the IFCN .
The UN steps up to the plate
Regulating hateful and harmful content online “is not censorship”, said the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, on Friday. “Authorizing” such speeches “has concrete consequences”, he insists, calling for a move to responsibility and governance in the digital space, while respecting human rights”, affirmed Mr. Türk, on the social network real world”. Social networks “shape society and have immense potential to improve our lives and connect us” but “they have also demonstrated their capacity to fuel conflict, incite hatred and threaten security”, he assured. And the lack of regulation “means that some people are silenced, particularly those whose voices are often marginalized,” he said.
Asked about the UN presence on the X and Meta networks, a UN spokesperson in Geneva, Michele Zaccheo, indicated during a press briefing that the United Nations “constantly monitors and evaluates this space ” online. “It is important for us to be present with information based on facts, and that is what we stand for,” he added. “We don’t know yet how this will evolve” but “at the moment we still think it’s important to be present on these platforms, to present evidence-based information,” he said. said.
The Council of Europe and human rights
As for the Council of Europe, Meta’s decision “could have negative consequences for human rights”, warned the Council of Europe’s Commissioner for Human Rights, Michael O’Flaherty. “Platforms must not stray from the facts, otherwise they create a vacuum in which misinformation thrives without verification and the damage to democracy is profound.” “It is important to emphasize that combating lies and preventing the spread of violent or hateful messages is not censorship. It is a commitment to protecting human rights,” he continues. The Council of Europe’s human rights commissioner “urges member states to redouble their efforts and show leadership” in the fight against disinformation “by ensuring that internet intermediaries mitigate systemic risks of disinformation and uncontrolled speech.” “This includes calling for more transparency in content moderation practices, including in the deployment of algorithmic systems,” continues Mr. O’Flaherty. “The goal is to protect human rights for all by striking a balance that preserves freedom of expression within its well-established limits.”
“Truth matters” for Joe Biden, there is “censorship” for Mark Zuckerberg
The President of the United States for a few more days, Joe Biden, on Friday deemed the cessation of these fact-checking activities on the part of Meta “shameful”. “The truth matters,” he said during an exchange with reporters at the White House. “It is totally contrary to everything that constitutes America. We want to tell the truth,” Joe Biden insisted. The American president’s exit is a reminder that his administration has often adopted a harsh tone regarding the responsibility of social networks in the spread of false information and hate speech. The Democrat himself, for example, said in July 2021 that platforms such as Facebook were “killing people”, in reference to the circulation of false information on vaccines against Covid-19. The words stuck in the throat of Mark Zuckerberg, who for his part once again accused Joe Biden’s teams of censorship, in the latest broadcast of Joe Rogan’s podcast, published Friday. He said that at the start of the pandemic he trusted the administration and health authorities, but then it became “difficult to follow” when the Democratic government implemented its vaccination program. “They also tried to censor everyone who opposed it, and they pushed us to delete things that were honestly true (…) and humorous videos,” he told the conservative host and extremely popular. “People from the Biden government were calling our teams and shouting at them,” said the founder of Facebook, who has been making advances to Donald Trump since his election. Mark Zuckerberg added that the Democratic president’s comments, saying that social networks were “killing people”, represented a turning point for him. “All these different agencies and branches of government started investigating
The WHO also reacts
Present at the press briefing, a spokesperson for the World Health Organization (WHO), Margaret Harris, added: “Our role is to provide good scientific information on health, and we must do it where the people are looking for them” and “we will therefore be present on all platforms, as much as possible”.
Brazil threatens Meta
Brazil, for its part, ordered Meta on Friday to explain within 72 hours the consequences in Latin America’s largest country of its reversal on fact-checking, demanding that the “fundamental rights” of citizens on the platforms be protected. “Due to the lack of transparency of the company, the government will present an extra-judicial notification” and Meta will have “72 hours to inform what exactly its policy for Brazil consists of,” Jorge Messias told journalists , attorney general of the Union, responsible for defending the legal interests of the Brazilian State. If the American group does not respond within the deadline, “legal and legal measures will be taken,” he added. Earlier in the week, the federal prosecutor’s office in Sao Paulo gave Meta 30 days to explain whether the decision to end the fact-checking program in the United States “will or will not apply to Brazil”, in order to ” assess” the possible impact. Brazilian President Lula received a phone call on Friday from his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron, with whom he agreed that “freedom of expression is not synonymous with freedom to propagate lies, prejudices or insults.” “They both considered positive the fact that Brazil and Europe continue to work together to prevent disinformation from endangering the sovereignty of countries, democracy and the fundamental rights of citizens,” said the Brazilian presidency in a press release. “All companies established in our country must respect Brazilian law,” Lula insisted on the social network always changes direction with the wind. “We are not going to allow the networks to give rise to digital carnage,” he thundered.
In its extra-judicial notification, consulted by AFP, the government requested “clarifications” on how the announced changes could affect “the promotion and protection of fundamental rights”. Brazil asks more specifically “what measures will be adopted” by Meta to stem racist, homophobic, transphobic content or content inciting violence against women, and to protect children and adolescents. The debate on freedom of expression and social networks is particularly sensitive in Brazil. The platform
The SPIIL and “ideological considerations”
The Independent Online News Press Union (Spiil), denounced in a press release the end of the fact-checking program of the Meta group (Instagram, Facebook, etc.). For the moment, the announcement made by the founder of the American group Mark Zuckerberg only concerns the United States. But Spiil says it is worried about the extension of this measure in Europe. “In a context of proliferation of false information accelerated by digital platforms, Spiil wishes to reaffirm the irreplaceable nature of information verification actions carried out by professional journalists to report the facts and inform the judgment of citizens.”
For the union which brings together 270 press publishers, “Meta’s desire to end its cooperation with a network of 90 certified organizations appears dictated above all by ideological considerations”. Mark Zuckerberg’s announcement came ahead of the January 20 inauguration of US President Donald Trump. Since the president’s election, Meta has appointed people close to the Republican to his group.
The union highlights the “indispensable” application of the Digital Services Act (DSA) by the European Commission. Entering into force on February 17, 2024, this regulation subjects digital services to a set of obligations. If this is not enough to make the digital giants fold, Spiil “calls on States and the European Union to have the courage to suspend their activity”, citing the example of Brazil which recently suspended X for several weeks.
