‘Blood on your hands’: A look back at Mark Zuckerberg’s tense moments in congressional hearings [Video]

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s newly unveiled freedom of speech policies signal a major shift in the Facebook social media platform’s content moderation strategy, following years of congressional clashes over alleged “censorship” and the regulation of political information.

“We’re going to get back to our roots and focus on reducing mistakes, simplifying our policies and restoring free expression on our platforms,” Zuckerberg said in a video posted Tuesday morning. “More specifically, we’re going to get rid of fact-checkers and replace them with Community Notes similar to X, starting in the U.S.” 

META ENDS FACT-CHECKING PROGRAM AS ZUCKERBERG VOWS TO RESTORE FREE EXPRESSION ON FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM

Zuckerberg’s shift in content moderation comes amid a history of being grilled by politicians on both sides of the aisle on Capitol Hill. 

In January 2024, Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., confronted Zuckerberg during a heated exchange about the harmful impact of social media on users, particularly young girls. The questioning followed revelations from internal Meta studies that indicated …