Elon Musk has called out the Biden administration’s pressure on Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, to censor COVID-19 misinformation as a violation of the First Amendment. This criticism follows revelations made by Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg in a letter to House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan.
In the letter, Zuckerberg acknowledged that the Biden administration was “wrong” to demand that Facebook suppress certain content related to COVID-19, including humor and satire. He also admitted that Meta had “demoted” stories about Hunter Biden’s laptop and promised to resist any future censorship attempts.
Musk, known for his stance as a “free speech absolutist,” responded on his social media platform, X, stating, “This sounds like a First Amendment violation.” He later emphasized that X is meant to support all viewpoints within legal boundaries, even those he personally disagrees with.
Zuckerberg expressed regret for not being more outspoken against the pressure from the White House, stating that Meta made decisions during the pandemic that, in hindsight, would not have been made with the information they now have. He asserted that Meta should not compromise its content standards due to pressure from any administration.
In response, a White House spokesperson defended their actions, stating that during a deadly pandemic, the administration encouraged responsible measures to protect public health and safety, while tech companies were expected to independently decide how to manage the information they present.
