In a reply on Threads to a user's post criticizing Meta's influence and suggesting that people feel trapped on the platform, Zuckerberg struck a defiant tone.
"No – I'm counting on these changes actually making our platforms better," he wrote.
I think Community Notes will be more effective than fact-checkers, reducing the number of people whose accounts get mistakenly banned is good, people want to be able to discuss civic topics and make arguments that are in the mainstream of political discourse, etc. Some people may leave our platforms for virtue signaling, but I think the vast majority and many new users will find that these changes make the products better.
Zuckerberg's response to the Threads user named Mary-Frances Makichen, who has 253 followers and is a "Spiritual Director" and author according to their bio, came just one day after Meta announced it would replace its third-party fact-checking partnerships with a crowdsourced Community Notes system similar to the one used by X.
Mass departures from social media platforms for symbolic reasons are not unprecedented.
On Election Day in the US, more than a quarter million X users deleted their accounts in protest against owner Elon Musk's deepening ties to the Trump administration.
Zuckerberg, however, appears unfazed, betting that Community Notes will enhance Meta's user experience and attract new audiences rather than drive them away.
If you're a current or former Meta employee, contact this reporter from a nonwork device securely on Signal at +1-408-905-9124 or email him at [email protected].
Meta plans to end US fact-checking partnerships in March, with payments to continue through August.
Meta has cited "changing free speech perceptions" as part of the reason for their decision.
Meta's global fact-checking support remains, including an IFCN Business Continuity Fund.
Meta's US fact-checking partnerships will officially end in March, and payments to partners will continue through August, Business Insider has learned.
Details of an exchange between Meta and Angie Holan, the director of the International Fact-Checking Network, were revealed during a private IFCN meeting attended by more than 150 members, the audio of which was obtained by Business Insider. These details have not been previously reported.
Meta informed the IFCN it was ending its fact-checking partnerships just 45 minutes before the company published a blog post about the decision, written by Joel Kaplan, Meta's new head of public policy who has long-standing ties to the Republican Party.
The company said its new approach was prompted by "changing perceptions of free speech" and a desire to "allow for more free speech."
Severance and a support fund for fact-checkers
Contracts with all 10 fact-checking organizations in the US will end in March, with payments continuing until August. Organizations that have not signed contracts for 2025 were offered the option to participate in a severance program.
Kaplan's post said that Meta will replace its fact-checking partnerships with X-style community notes — but the Meta executive told Holan that the rollout of community notes is expected to take time.
Meta indicated that the system would be built and implemented throughout 2025. When asked whether the company intends to expand community notes globally, Meta gave a noncommittal response, saying it would first monitor the program's effects in the US and consider the regulatory landscape in other countries.
Participation guidelines for the program remain unclear.
When Holan pressed Meta on how the IFCN should navigate the divide between US changes and the status of global programs, Meta's response was vague, advising the IFCN to "stay present for both constituencies."
Holan expressed disappointment during the conversation, describing Meta's fact-checking program as one that "positively influenced a whole ecosystem of fact-checking" and emphasized that the work was never about censorship.
"This seems like politics," she told the Meta executive, who declined to confirm or deny political motivations, stating only that they were "personally proud" of the program's legacy.
Meta's support for other IFCN initiatives will remain unchanged. This includes the IFCN's new Business Continuity Fund, designed to provide temporary financial assistance to fact-checking organizations affected by natural disasters, civil unrest, military conflicts, or state repression.
The fund aims to help organizations resume their normal operations as quickly as possible and ensure the safety and well-being of their team members. Meta also confirmed that a separate WhatsApp-related grant program would continue.
However, when asked whether Meta would continue sponsoring Global Fact, IFCN's flagship annual conference, the executive had no definitive answer, suggesting that IFCN "stay in conversation" about the issue.
Despite the end of its US fact-checking program, the executive left the door open for continued communication with IFCN, saying Meta was "open to keep talking" about ways to support public information efforts.
IFCN partners blindsided financially
Many IFCN partners were blindsided by the announcement, as they had assumed that their work with Meta would continue.
"Several of the signatories were waiting for their new contracts," Holan said in the meeting. "The new contracts did come over the winter break. Things just seemed on course with the program in the US. We didn't have any alerts or messages that something like yesterday's news was coming."
The abrupt end left partners reeling.
Jesse Stiller, the managing editor of Check Your Fact, a Meta US fact-checking partner for five years, described the fallout.
"We had just signed our contract for 2025, and it looked like we were going to sign another one for 2026 if everything went to plan," Stiller said in the meeting. "We found out about the news literally when we woke up the next morning. The first thing I saw was a news notification — I thought it might be a mistake. Everything was thrown into chaos."
Stiller said that Check Your Fact is almost entirely reliant on Meta's funding. "We don't have any other external funding. Meta is our primary revenue source," he said.
Check Your Fact's team of 10 faces an uncertain future, he said. "The best-case scenario is that we last a few more months with the severance package. But honestly, we're done by March."
During the meeting, several fact-checkers voiced frustration not only with the program's termination but also with Zuckerberg's recent comments about fact-checkers.
Jency Jacob, the managing editor of the India-based fact-checking organization Boom, suggested that US fact-checkers formally call on Zuckerberg to retract his remarks.
"Basically, what he's done is he's literally burnt the house down," Jacob said. "For many years to come, his statements will continue to be used against fact-checkers."
Holan acknowledged the emotional toll but urged attendees to maintain professionalism.
"We do want to maintain a certain level of civility so that we can continue the relationships with Meta in the future when circumstances change or the political environment shifts," she said. "We don't want to say things that aren't necessary and could end dialogue."
The ripple effects of Meta's decision were felt globally.
Justin Arenstein, the cofounder and CEO of Code for Africa, an African network of data journalism labs, said that Meta's Middle East and North Africa team was also blindsided.
"The decision caught many of Meta's MENA team by surprise. They were discussing the expansion of our contract to new countries as recently as two weeks ago," Arenstein wrote in the meeting chat.
If you're a current or former Meta employee, contact this reporter from a nonwork device securely on Signal at +1-408-905-9124 or email him at [email protected].
Meta is ending US fact-checking partnerships and shifting to crowdsourced moderation tools.
The International Fact-Checking Network called an emergency meeting after the announcement.
Meta's decision affects the financial sustainability of fact-checking organizations.
The International Fact-Checking Network has convened an emergency meeting of its members following Meta's announcement on Tuesday that it will end its third-party fact-checking partnerships in the US and replace them with a crowdsourced moderation tool similar to X's community notes.
In an exclusive interview with Business Insider, the IFCN's director, Angie Holan, confirmed that the meeting, scheduled for Wednesday, was organized in direct response to Meta's decision.
"We hold these meetings monthly, but we called this one specifically because of today's news," she said.
The meeting is expected to draw between 80 and 100 attendees from the IFCN's network of fact-checkers, which spans 170 organizations worldwide. Not all the expected attendees are Meta fact-checking partners, though many of them have a stake in the program's future and its global implications.
The IFCN has long played a crucial role in Meta's fact-checking ecosystem by accrediting organizations for Meta's third-party program, which began in 2016 after the US presidential election that year.
Certification from the IFCN signaled that a fact-checking organization met rigorous editorial and transparency standards. Meta's partnerships with these certified organizations became a cornerstone of its efforts to combat misinformation, focusing on flagging false claims, contextualizing misinformation, and curbing its spread.
'People are upset'
Holan described the mood among fact-checkers as somber and frustrated.
"This program has been a major part of the global fact-checking community's work for years," she said. "People are upset because they saw themselves as partners in good standing with Meta, doing important work to make the platform more accurate and reliable."
She noted that fact-checkers were not responsible for removing posts, only for labeling misleading content and limiting its virality.
"It was never about censorship but about adding context to prevent false claims from going viral," Holan said.
A last-minute heads-up
An employee at PolitiFact, one of the first news organizations to partner with Meta on its Third-Party Fact-Checking Program in December 2016, said the company received virtually no warning from Meta before the program was killed.
"The PolitiFact team found out this morning at the same time as everyone else," the employee told BI.
An IFCN employee who was granted anonymity told BI that the organization itself got a heads-up only "late yesterday" via email that something was coming. It asked for a 6 a.m. call — about an hour before Meta's blog post written by its new Republican policy head, Joel Kaplan, went live.
"I had a feeling it was bad news," this employee said.
Meta did not respond to a request for comment.
Financial fallout for fact-checkers
Meta's decision could have serious financial consequences for fact-checking organizations, especially those that relied heavily on funding from the platform.
According to a 2023 report published by the IFCN, income from Meta's Third-Party Fact-Checking Program and grants remain fact-checkers' predominant revenue streams.
"Fact-checking isn't going away, and many robust organizations existed before Meta's program and will continue after it," Holan said. "But some fact-checking initiatives were created because of Meta's support, and those will be vulnerable."
She also underscored the broader challenges facing the industry, saying that fact-checking organizations share the same financial pressures as newsrooms. "This is bad news for the financial sustainability of fact-checking journalism," she said.
Skepticism toward community notes
Meta plans to replace its partnerships with community notes, a crowd-based system modeled after X's approach.
Holan expressed doubt that this model could serve as an effective substitute for expert-led fact-checking.
"Community notes on X have only worked in cases where there's bipartisan agreement — and how often does that happen?" she said. "When two political sides disagree, there's no independent way to flag something as false."
It's not yet clear how Meta's implementation of community notes will work.
'We'll be here after' Meta's program
Despite the uncertainty, Holan remains steadfast in the IFCN's mission.
"The IFCN was here before Meta's program, and we'll be here after it," she said. "We may look different in size and scope, but we'll continue promoting the highest standards in fact-checking and connecting organizations that want to collaborate worldwide."
Holan said Wednesday's meeting would focus on supporting IFCN members as they navigate this transition.
"We're here to help them figure out the best way forward," she said.
If you're a current or former Meta employee, contact this reporter from a nonwork device securely on Signal at +1-408-905-9124 or email him at [email protected].
