Beware! There will be even more false information online

“The bottom line is: We take misinformation seriously.  There are many respected fact-checking organizations . . . and, while we have reached out to some, we plan to learn from many more.”

Mark Zuckerberg, personal Facebook post, November 2016

No wonder the world has so many problems.  More and more people believe the false news and half-baked truths they read online.  That's one of the reasons why Donald Trump was elected to the highest office in the land last November.  So many voters were misled or fooled by his lies.  So, Trump will be quite pleased about the recent news concerning social media.

Meta, the social networking giant which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp and Threads, has announced that it will end its longstanding fact-checking program.  The fact-checking program was started in order to restrict the spread of false information across its social media apps.  Meta will now allow more speech, and the onus will be on users to correct inaccurate and false posts.  

Obviously, it is impossible to correct all misinformation.  Readers cannot entirely be relied upon to monitor inaccurate information or outright lies. The danger is that some readers will endorse the misinformation, further spreading lies and propaganda.               

Unfortunately, there has been a mass brainwashing in America.  For example, many Americans actually believe that January 6th is of little consequence, that the attack on the Capitol in Washington was as harmless as a walk in the park.  They regard the January 6th insurrectionists as Capitol tourists.  They won't believe or can't believe what is clear to anyone who watches the videos of that horrible day.  A violent mob of white supremacists and right-wing extremists, encouraged by Donald Trump, attempted to overthrow the duly elected government of the United Sates.  That mob called for the hanging of then-Vice President Mike Pence.  It is truly frightening that the man who engineered that attack on democracy will  soon be back in the Oval Office. He wishes to pardon the January 6th insurgents and he regards them as patriots.

To please Donald Trump, Meta has opted for a wild west approach to free speech.  In other words, it has chosen a recipe for chaos.  Unfettered free speech is the law of of the jungle.  Free speech must have limits.   It should also be kept in mind that the First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States does not protect the right to yell "fire" in a crowded theatre.

Not surprisingly, right wing Supreme Court Judge and Trump stooge, Samuel Alito, in his 2022 remarks to the conservative Heritage Foundation, repeated the myth that yelling "fire" in a crowded theatre is "unprotected free speech."  Alito, however, did acknowledge that the First Amendment doesn't protect all speech, including "extortion and threats," defamation., and "shouting 'fire' in a crowded theatre."

The world certainly has more information than ever before, but is humanity really better off when the truth is more difficult to find?  There's no turning back from the internet, social media and AI.  They are very useful tools when used properly.  Used improperly, they can be profoundly dangerous, especially when there is a lack of critical thinking. 

Like it more not, the internet and social media are the way of the future.  They are locked in forever.  It is foolhardy not to adjust to this reality.  Sometimes, though, books and hardcopies of newspapers seem far more trustworthy.

Meta is obviously positioning itself for Trump's inglorious return to the White House.  It is no coincidence that this decision by Meta has come just before Trump's inauguration.  Could it be that Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is trying to curry favour with the Dear Leader?   

According to a report on Semafor. Zuckerberg paid homage to Trump by visiting his Mar-a-lago palace on Friday, January 10, 2025.  It was confirmed to Semiafor that Zuckerberg was spotted at Trump's Florida compound on that day.  It wasn't Zuckerberg's first visit to the compound. either.  According to CBS News, on November 28th, 2024, soon after the presidential election, the Mega chief had Thanksgiving dinner with Trump at the exclusive club.

It is no accident that just days after Mark Zuckerberg's January 10th visit to Mar-a-lago, Meta announced its new policy, ending two sources of aggravation for Trump and his supporters: fact-checking and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.  In a video, Zuckerberg stated that the changes were implemented due to "too many mistakes and too much censorship."

Below is a September 19, 2019 photo of Zuckerberg meeting Trump in the Oval Office.

It is absolutely disgusting how so many bow down to Trump.  It is tragic how he is being allowed to build his authoritarian regime, with very little impunity.  I am sickened.  How can so many seemingly educated people have forgotten the rise of fascism in the 1920s and 1930s?  Trump is using fascist language and fascist tactics.  America, what have you done?

Note:  I will try my best to practice what I preach.  I pledge to aim for the accuracy of the factual information presented on Number 16.  I will reveal my sources.

SOURCES: New York Times, "Meta Says It Will End Fact-Checking Program on Social Media Posts," Mike Isaac and Theodore Schliefer; January 9, 2025; Freedom Forum; "Is It Illegal to Yell 'Fire' in a Crowed Theater?" by Freedom Forum; Reason (reason.com), "Yes, ," by Emma Camp, October 22, 2022; Semafor,"Trump, Zuckerberg meet at Mar-a-lago," by Shelby Talcott, January 10, 2025.

- Joanne