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Sunday, Jan 19, 2025

Conservative intellectuals discuss social media’s future after Facebook drops fact-checking, citing censorship and misinformation risks.

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[This is an automatically generated summary, for reference only]

Conservative intellectuals Adrian Papahagi and Teodor Baconschi discussed the future of social media after Mark Zuckerberg announced Facebook was dropping its fact-checking program. Papahagi warned that without discernment, people will fall prey to conspiracy theories. Zuckerberg blamed external fact-checking organizations for censorship issues, but partners countered that only company employees remove content. The discussion covered how Facebook’s reliance on community reaction might affect misinformation control, with experts noting the community’s power is significant. While EU regulations may differ from US approaches, Papahagi expressed pessimism about stopping disinformation due to human nature and evolving manipulation tactics like deep fakes. Baconschi suggested legal accountability for online speech and critical thinking education as solutions, while Papahagi emphasized that controlling algorithms or platforms is nearly impossible; instead, disqualifying candidates who misuse social media funding is key.


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