Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg told a U.S. congressional committee that senior officials in President Joe Biden's administration pressured the company to censor certain COVID-19-related content during the pandemic, and the company made choices it would not make now.
The House Judiciary Committee released Zuckerberg's letter on Monday (26/8).
Zuckerberg wrote that the censored content included humor and satire, and that government officials “expressed deep frustration with our team when we disagreed.”
“I believe government pressure is misplaced, and I regret that we couldn’t be more forthright about this,” Zuckerberg said.
When asked to respond to the statement, a White House spokesperson said, “When faced with a deadly pandemic, this Administration pushed for responsible action to protect public health and safety.”
“Our position has been clear and consistent: we believe technology companies and other private actors should consider the impact of their actions on the American people, while making independent decisions about the information they share,” the spokesperson said.
Zuckerberg also discussed the $400 million effort his charitable foundation undertook ahead of the 2020 presidential election, which he said was aimed at ensuring that urban, suburban and rural communities had the resources to get people to vote safely during the global pandemic.
“Despite the analysis I’ve seen that suggests otherwise, I know that some people believe this activity favors one party over another. My goal is to be neutral and not play any role — or even appear to play any role. So I don’t plan to make similar contributions this cycle,” Zuckerberg said.
The letter comes about two months before the US general election in November. (uh)
