Meta unveils new community notes program across Facebook, Instagram, Threads
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, is set to launch a new community notes program next week, replacing its biased third-party fact-checking program. In an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital, Meta’s global affairs officer, Joel Kaplan, revealed that content with community notes applied will not be limited in distribution to users nor have penalties imposed.
The decision to end the fact-checking program and lift restrictions on speech was made in January to “restore free expression” across Meta’s platforms. Kaplan explained that the third-party fact-checking program had become prone to partisan political bias, eroding trust and credibility in the system. As a result, Meta opted to replace the program with a crowdsourced, community-based approach.
The new community notes program will allow users to write and rate notes on content across Facebook, Instagram, and Threads. Meta has developed a waitlist with hundreds of thousands of users who are eager to contribute and add context to potentially misleading content. Unlike the previous fact-checking program, the community notes program will be driven by a broad cross-section of users from various ideological backgrounds.
Meta will gradually admit people off the waitlist and test the writing and rating system before publishing any notes. The algorithm used for the program has been borrowed from X and only applies a community note when users who normally disagree reach a consensus that something is misleading. This ensures that bias is minimized in the new system.
Contributors will be able to submit notes on almost any form of content, except for advertisements. There will be no penalties attached to the community notes, unlike the previous fact-checking program which often resulted in reduced distribution of fact-checked posts. The goal of the program is to provide additional information and context to help users make informed decisions without limiting the flow of information.
Meta believes that users should have access to both the original posts and the additional information provided by community notes. The notes will be limited to 500 characters and written by contributors within the Meta community notes program. The feature will be available in six languages commonly used in the United States, with plans to expand to other languages in the future.
Overall, Meta’s new community notes program aims to empower users to provide additional context without imposing penalties or restrictions on content. By prioritizing free expression and user input, Meta hopes to enhance the overall experience for its community members.
