Zuckerberg says US authorities demanded censorship

Mark Zuckerberg appeared on Joe Rogan's podcast, where he discussed pressure from the Biden administration, which allegedly demanded that Meta censor memes. During the conversation, he touched on several key topics.

Zuckerberg's main statements:

1. The beginning of censorship on social media
   According to Zuckerberg, censorship at Meta intensified after Donald Trump's election in 2016 and the Brexit referendum. The company's founder referred to journalistic investigations claiming that these events were the result of disinformation campaigns.

2. Shift to political issues
   Initially, fact-checking at Meta was aimed at debunking obvious myths, such as the flat Earth theory. However, it later came to cover politically motivated topics. Zuckerberg called this process dangerous and compared it to the scenario described in George Orwell's novel "1984".

3. Pressure during the pandemic
   The period of the COVID-19 pandemic became a key stage in the intensification of censorship. As Zuckerberg claims, the Biden administration pressured Meta, demanding the removal of information about vaccine side effects. He noted that he himself did not participate in negotiations with the authorities.

4. Censorship of memes and satire
   According to Zuckerberg, the White House persistently urged the company to censor memes and satirical posts. Meta refused, which led to retaliatory actions, including public accusations by Biden. In the summer of 2021, the US president accused the company of "killing people" due to the spread of disinformation about COVID-19. This triggered a series of investigations into Meta.

5. Criticism of Trump's ban
   Zuckerberg expressed disagreement with the decision by Twitter (now X) to ban Donald Trump's account, considering it a restriction on freedom of speech. However, he praised the platform for using community notes instead of traditional fact-checking.

6. Fighting fake accounts and harmful content
   The Meta founder noted that states continue to interfere in social media through networks of fake accounts. AI-based systems help identify such networks and combat drug sales and other harmful content. However, according to Zuckerberg, the accuracy of these systems is still far from perfect.

7. Dana White's involvement
   Zuckerberg also mentioned the entry of UFC founder Dana White into Meta's board of directors. He is confident that this will help the company better cope with pressure from state structures.

8. Access to WhatsApp messages
   Despite the use of encryption, US intelligence agencies sometimes gain access to messages in the messenger. However, according to Zuckerberg, Meta has no ability to view users' messages unless they are transmitted in another way. He named WhatsApp and Signal the most secure messengers but emphasised that questions remain regarding Telegram due to the prosecution of its founder, Pavel Durov.

Zuckerberg also added that the company will continue to work on improving technologies and data protection, although it is currently impossible to completely avoid errors.