Biden officials pressured Facebook to censor Covid-19 content, Zuckerberg claims

Senior Biden administration officials pressured Facebook to “censor” some Covid-19 content during the pandemic, Meta chief executive officer Mark Zuckerberg has said.

In a letter to the House Judiciary Committee, Mr Zuckerberg vowed that the social media giant would push back if it faced such demands again.

Mr Zuckerberg alleged that the officials, including those from the White House, “repeatedly pressured” Facebook for months to take down “certain Covid-19 content including humour and satire”.

The officials “expressed a lot of frustration” when the company did not agree, he said in the letter.

“I believe the government pressure was wrong and I regret that we were not more outspoken about it,” Mr Zuckerberg wrote in the letter dated August 26 and posted on the committee’s Facebook page and to its account on X.

The letter is the latest repudiation by Mr Zuckerberg of efforts to target misinformation around the coronavirus pandemic during and after the 2020 presidential election, particularly as allegations have emerged that some posts were deleted or restricted wrongly.

“I also think we made some choices that, with the benefit of hindsight and new information, we wouldn’t make today,” he said, without elaborating.

“We’re ready to push back if something like this happens again.”

In response, the White House said in a statement: “When confronted with a deadly pandemic, this administration encouraged responsible actions to protect public health and safety.

“Our position has been clear and consistent: we believe tech companies and other private actors should take into account the effects their actions have on the American people, while making independent choices about the information they present.”

Experts warn this year’s US election could be swamped by misinformation on social media with the proliferation of artificial intelligence and other tools to produce false news stories and content that could mislead voters.

Facebook in early 2021 appended what Mr Zuckerberg called labels with “credible information” to posts about Covid-19 vaccines.

That is after it moved in April 2020 — just as the virus had led to global shutdowns and radical changes in everyday life — to warn users who shared misinformation about Covid-19.

Conservatives have long derided Facebook and other major tech companies as favouring liberal priorities and accused them of censorship.

Mr Zuckerberg has tried to change the company’s perception on the right, going on podcaster Joe Rogan’s show in 2022 and complimenting Republican nominee Donald Trump’s response to an assassination attempt as “badass”.

He sent Monday’s letter to the House Judiciary Committee, whose chairman, Jim Jordan, is a long-time Trump ally.

Mr Zuckerberg also said he would no longer donate money to widen election access for voters through the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, the company that runs the philanthropy for him and his wife, Priscilla Chan.

The couple previously donated 400 million dollars (£302 million) to help local election offices prepare for voters in the 2020 presidential election, with funds used for protective equipment to prevent the spread of the coronavirus at polling sites, drive-thru voting locations and equipment to process mail ballots.

Mr Zuckerberg said: “I know that some people believe this work benefited one party over the other.

“My goal is to be neutral and not play a role one way or another – or to even appear to be playing a role. So I don’t plan on making a similar contribution this cycle.”