More than 3 billion people worldwide log on to Meta’s apps every day, the sort of reach most aspiring global megalomaniacs can only dream of. It’s also one of the main reasons why the decision by Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta – the company behind Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Threads – to scrap its third-party factcheckers in the US is so significant.
That Zuckerberg, who has been under huge pressure from US president-elect Donald Trump, made the decision is hardly surprising. But it should be another worrying moment for anyone who is concerned about the survival of objective truth.
Social media sites have always been places where opposing views have been loudly heard. Without proper moderation, only those who shout the loudest will benefit from further polarisation of discourse.
By way of example, Emma Graham-Harrison looks at six countries in the global south where Facebook shorn of factcheckers has allegedly been used to fuel hatred online and real world violence.
Then Emily Bell explains how the effective political capture of information gatekeepers by Trump also poses serious policy questions for governments and institutions outside the US.
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Five essential reads in this week’s edition
Spotlight | The devastation of Los Angeles
Gabrielle Canon reports from Pacific Palisades, where the traumatised and displaced have been picking over the wildfire-ruined remains of beloved homes and communities
Feature | Caroline Darian interview
The daughter of Dominique and Gisèle Pelicot is coming to terms with being the child of both victim and perpetrator in the biggest rape trial in French history. Angelique Chrisafis hears her story
Feature | The deadliest beings on the planet
Microscopic bacteriophages are everywhere – it’s estimated that they can infect and destroy between 20% and 40% of all microbes every day. But some scientists believe phages can help in the f ight against superbugs. By Jackson Ryan
Opinion | We forget Sudan at our peril
Almost two years into a civil war, Sudan is facing anarchy, famine, genocide – and ambivalence from the rest of the world, writes Nesrine Malik
Culture | By a thread – the art of Doris Salcedo
The Colombian artist Doris Salcedo transforms collective grief into art, confronting the scars of conflict and displacement with delicate yet powerful creations. Tim Adams spoke to her
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What else we’ve been reading
Behind locked-down doors, the Covid years took a huge toll on many young people at a time when they were least equipped to deal with it. In this extract from their raw new memoir, mother and daughter Christie Watson and Rowan Egberongbe open up on how they withstood and survived a teenage mental breakdown during the pandemic. Graham Snowdon, editor
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Other highlights from the Guardian website
• Audio | Where did our attention spans go, and can we get them back? – podcast
• Video | How big pharma keeps affordable drugs out of reach
• Gallery | Japan’s coming of age ceremony
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