Meta's Content Moderation Changes Alarm Advertisers as Zuckerberg Aligns with Trump and Musk

Meta Platforms Inc META chief Mark Zuckerberg’s unexpected ‘free speech’ restructuring of the Facebook and Instagram parent’s content moderation has sparked concerns among advertisers.

Mark Zuckerberg shared in a video that the company’s social media platforms will soon be following the Community Notes style of content moderation put in place by Elon Musk’s X.

“It’s time to get back to our roots around free expression on Facebook and Instagram,” Zuckerberg said in a video.

The advertisers fear the perpetration of harmful content and misinformation across the social media platform with Zuckerberg’s latest move to appease Trump and ally Elon Musk.

Zuckerberg recently met President-elect Donald Trump and donated to his inauguration fund. Multiple advertising bosses voiced their concerns to the Financial Times, especially as marketing dominates the company’s $135 billion annual sales.

Meta replaced global policy chief Nick Clegg with Republican ally Joel Kaplan and tapped martial arts titan and Trump friend Dana White to its board.

However, the ditching of professional fact-checkers favoring a ‘community notes’ approach pioneered by Musk’s X (formerly Twitter) has disturbed the advertising industry, given brand safety concerns at rivals X and TikTok.

During the Joe Biden regime, the censorship led Facebook to ban Trump from January 6, 2021, to January 7, 2023, for his alleged role in the Capitol Hill riot. Twitter followed suit.

Musk actively advocated for free speech and supported Trump during the 2024 presidential campaign. Trump shares his views on Truth Social, owned by Trump Media & Technology Group Corp DJT, where he previously held a majority stake.

In a related move, Trump urged the Supreme Court to delay enforcing a law that could ban the TikTok app. This marks a shift from Trump’s 2020 stance to ban TikTok due to its Chinese ownership.

Meta is featured as Rosenblatt’s best idea for the first half of 2025. It is backed principally by advertising, which accounts for 98% of sales, and artificial intelligence. AI is boosting daily usage on Facebook and Instagram, bolstering reel traction and improving ad efficiency.

Price Action: META stock is down 1.54% at $606.37 at the last check on Monday.

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