Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has accused the Biden administration of pressuring his company to remove posts related to the side effects of COVID-19 vaccines in the United States. Speaking on the popular podcast show “The Joe Rogan Experience,” Zuckerberg alleged that White House officials had exerted significant pressure on Meta to censor content they deemed objectionable, including memes and posts critical of the vaccine rollout.
One such meme that drew the White House’s attention featured Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio and suggested that people might have to receive compensation for COVID-19 vaccine-related side effects in the future. Zuckerberg described the meme as a form of harmless political humor but claimed that government officials wanted it removed from the platform.
Zuckerberg clarified that he is personally in favor of vaccinations, stating that vaccines offer more benefits than risks. However, he criticized the administration’s approach, noting that it crossed a line by attempting to silence legitimate discussions around vaccine side effects.
“This really hit the most extreme during the Biden administration when they were trying to roll out the vaccine program. I’m personally pro-vaccine as it has more positive than negative. But I think that while they were trying to push that program, they were also trying to censor anyone who is basically arguing it,” Zuckerberg said during the podcast.
The Meta CEO revealed that the White House’s demands included taking down any content that mentioned vaccine side effects, even when such information was factual. He called these requests “ridiculous” and emphasized that his company resisted complying with them.
“And they pushed us super hard to take down things that were honestly true. They said that anything that says that vaccines have side effects, you need to take down. I was like, we are not gonna do that,” he said.
Zuckerberg’s remarks have reignited debates over government involvement in regulating online content and the balance between promoting public health initiatives and protecting freedom of speech. His claims add to ongoing discussions about the role of social media platforms in moderating content and the influence of political entities on these decisions.
Meta has faced criticism in the past for its content moderation policies, with some arguing that the platform does not do enough to curb misinformation, while others believe it unfairly censors certain viewpoints.
