The European Digital Media Observatory (EDMO) has expressed strong support for the fact-checking community and concern over Meta’s decision to phase out its third-party fact-checking programme, beginning in the US. The move, announced by CEO Mark Zuckerberg, will replace professional fact-checkers with a user-led “community notes” system similar to X.
EDMO warns that this shift undermines years of progress in tackling disinformation, describing Zuckerberg’s framing of fact-checkers as biased censors as misleading and politically motivated. The group argues that Meta’s reversal threatens both civic discourse and democratic processes, and contradicts the EU’s framework for freedom of expression online.
Calling it a “daunting start to 2025,” EDMO pledged to intensify efforts to defend the EU’s evidence-based approach to disinformation and protect the integrity of the digital information environment.
