Georgia’s ruling political party has expressed approval over Meta’s recent announcement to move away from independent fact-checkers on its Facebook and Instagram platforms, a decision that aligns with X’s “community notes” system. However, the excitement may be somewhat premature, as Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg clarified that this shift will initially only apply in the United States.
Shalva Papuashvili, Speaker of the Georgian Parliament and member of the Georgian Dream (GD) party, took to social media to commend the move. “Facebook’s new approach to fact-checking, similar to X’s Community Notes, is a step forward in prioritizing the truth over disinformation,” Papuashvili wrote.
However, Tamar Kintsurashvili, the head of the Media Development Foundation (MDF) and the Myth Detector project, disagreed. In a Facebook post, she cautioned that Papuashvili’s praise misinterprets the situation, as the new model from Meta does not affect the role of European fact-checkers, who will continue their work of exposing misinformation.
While GD’s positive reaction to Meta’s decision is understandable given their frequent clashes with fact-checking practices, it reflects their ongoing frustration with content removals. Meta has previously taken down media associated with the ruling party, often citing disinformation as the reason. One notable incident occurred last August when Meta removed pages and accounts, many of which supported the GD, for spreading disinformation, particularly concerning protests against Georgia’s controversial Foreign Agents Law. Meta has also targeted inauthentic channels connected to GD-affiliated content.
GD’s celebration, then, may be linked to their desire for more lenient moderation on platforms like Facebook and Instagram, especially as the new model may reduce the scrutiny of their content. Yet, with Meta’s new system still in its early stages, it is uncertain how the shift will affect European operations and the broader fight against disinformation.
By Team GT
