WASHINGTON: Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg believes US government pressure on his social media platforms to take down certain Covid-19 content in 2021 was “wrong,” and said he would resist similar attempts in the future, according to a letter submitted to a US congressional committee.

In the letter, addressed to House Judiciary Com­mittee Chairman Jim Jor­dan and released by Republicans on the committee, Zuckerberg address­­ed a number of controversies centred on content moderation on his platforms.

He also asserted that he did not plan on repeating funding efforts for US election infrastructure ahead of the country’s presidential poll this year, donations that had drawn sharp criticism from Republicans. Zuckerberg’s submission to the committee on Monday comes just over two months out from a tightly contested US presidential election race, with the spotlight on widespread online misinformation about the candidates.

Published in Dawn, August 28th, 2024