Facebook and Instagram’s parent company Meta may face criticism for recent changes to its content moderation policies. According to a recent report from The Intercept, META now allows a wide range of abusive speech targeting different racial, ethnic, sexual and gender identities. Internal training materials obtained by the publications now reveal examples of acceptable speech, including highly offensive profanity and demeaning language. There are already many people, possibly many of them Facebook and Instagram users, criticizing the new policy.

The policy change coincides with Meta’s suspension of its fact-checking program, which is intended to “remove restrictions to allow more speech,” according to a company statement released Tuesday. Meta’s new global policy lead Joel Kaplan defended the change as an effort to address the increasing complexity of content management across the platform. CEO Mark Zuckerberg expressed similar sentiments and introduced the changes as a means to promote free ideological and political expression.

However, critics argue that these changes open the door to harmful rhetoric and misinformation on social media. The said training documents revealed outline how moderators are now instructed to handle posts under the revised hate speech policy. The materials include examples of posts deemed acceptable under the new guidelines, such as derogatory comments about immigrants, LGBTQ+ individuals and minorities, which were previously banned.

Meta announced on January 7, 2025 that it would stop implementing fact-checking measures on its platforms. Company CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that the fact-checking team is making a lot of mistakes. Of course, the team hit back and said that Zuckerberg’s claims are false. This decision is already quite unpopular among meta critics around the world, who believe that Zuckerberg has made this change in content policy only to please the new US President Donald Trump.

Moreover, the move has also raised concerns as fact-checking is seen as an important tool to combat misinformation, especially during elections and public health crises. Critics say removing these safeguards could increase the spread of false stories and harmful propaganda.
As a result, reports show that Google searches on how to delete Facebook and Instagram are increasing. Engagement on Facebook and Instagram has also reportedly declined since the policy change. Users, especially those advocating for greater accountability from social media companies, fear that Meta’s policy change will compromise the security and reliability of its platforms.

Meta’s fact-checking initiative, which was launched in December 2016, was launched amid heightened scrutiny over the spread of fake news. The program was initially lauded as a step toward restoring confidence. By identifying and limiting the reach of misleading content, the company aims to curb the impact of viral rumors and disinformation campaigns. However, the discontinuation of these measures marks a major reversal, leading many to question Meta’s commitment to transparency and public accountability.

The changes have wide-ranging implications for the online ecosystem. As harmful content and misinformation potentially flourish unchecked, social media’s role as a source of reliable information comes into question. Advocates of responsible digital governance argue that platforms like Meta should prioritize user security and the integrity of shared information over unregulated free expression.