Meta's pivot on fact-checks in US sparks misinformation fears in India

Although Meta has clarified that the program is being discontinued only in the US, the implications are being closely watched in India

Meta’s decision to discontinue its fact-checking programme in the United States has raised concerns among its partners in India, prompting many to reconsider their strategies. Experts warn that the move could significantly impact social media users in India where Meta operates one of its largest fact-checking networks. 

 

While Meta has clarified that the decision applies only to the US, where third-party fact-checking will be replaced by the community-driven initiative (like X’s Community Notes), the ripple effects are being closely observed in India. Here, the company collaborates with 11 independent, certified fact-checking organisations covering content in 15 languages.

 

Advocacy groups and industry experts argue that discontinuing the programme could leave Indian users increasingly vulnerable to misinformation. 

 

 

“This raises serious concerns, as untrained individuals may lack the awareness or tools to recognise and mitigate the biases that professional fact-checkers actively work to address,” said Pranav Bhaskar Tiwari, senior programme manager at The Dialogue, an emerging public-policy think tank.

 

Tiwari noted that while illegal content -- such as material related to terrorism, child exploitation, and fraud -- will continue to be actively moderated, the burden of addressing harmful but context-dependent content is now shifting largely onto users. He also warned that the policy raises questions about Meta’s ability to protect vulnerable users, particularly minors. “As Meta’s Community Notes initiative matures, it must work diligently to prevent the platform from being flooded with content skewed towards specific political leanings, preserving an inclusive digital space,” he added.  

 

Several Indian fact-checking organisations working with Meta said they had yet to see a direct impact from the decision but are already reassessing their business strategies. Many share concerns similar to Tiwari’s about the programme’s potential discontinuation. 

 

Jency Jacob, managing editor at BOOM, India’s first fact-checking newsroom, commented on LinkedIn: “The ending of the programme was inevitable someday and is definitely not a surprise, even for the US fact-checkers. But the choice of words by the Meta CEO is unfortunate and not in sync with the actual experience of his own team who implemented the programme and worked hard on it. The programme can end, but the need for fact-checking and its importance for honest public discourse will only increase, even as funding becomes harder to access. Fact-checkers will have to find alternative ways to survive and scale up or down accordingly.” 

 

India’s fact-checking ecosystem is particularly worried because only a handful of major players — Meta, Google, and X (through its Community Notes) — actively collaborate with fact-checkers. 

 

“To give credit to Meta, they have supported fact-checkers for the last five or six years. But if they plan to stop, it will have a significant impact. While Google also works with fact-checkers, they fund via grants. Only Meta has contracts with fact-checkers as part of editorial operations,” said a source from a fact-checking company working with Meta in India. 

 

Experts warn that Meta’s decision to shift toward community-driven moderation signals a major change in content management on its platform. “The unrestricted availability of such content could feel overwhelming to users unfamiliar with these topics until their recommender algorithms adapt to their preferences and viewing habits,” said Tiwari. 

 

Fact-checkers working with Meta, who spoke to Business Standard, said the move will disproportionately affect users in India. “If I, as a social media user, see an alarming post on Facebook, and there is no fact-checker to assist in identifying credible content, I am left vulnerable to being misled,” said a senior executive at another fact-checking organisation. 

 

Angie Drobnic Holan, director of the International Fact-Checking Network, echoed these concerns in a LinkedIn post: “This decision will hurt social media users who are looking for accurate, reliable information to make decisions about their everyday lives and interactions with friends and family. Fact-checking journalism has never censored or removed posts; it’s added information and context to controversial claims, and it’s debunked hoax content and conspiracy theories.” 

Home Truths

 

-  In India, Meta collaborates with 11 independent, certified fact-checking organisations covering content in 15 languages

 

-  Discontinuing the programme could leave users vulnerable to misinformation, experts warn

 

-  The burden of addressing harmful but context-dependent content is now shifting largely onto users

 

-  Indian fact checkers reassessing their business strategies