Canberra [Australia], January 9: Australia's democracy could be at risk as social media giants turn their backs on independent fact-checking programs, a senior politician warns.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers has expressed worries over Meta's decision to end its third-party fact-checking services on Facebook and Instagram in the US as misinformation and disinformation continues to spread online.
"It's very concerning," he told ABC on Thursday.
"Misinformation and disinformation is very dangerous, we've seen it explode in the last few years, and it's a very damaging development for our democracy."
The government has previously attempted to crack down on the issue with misinformation legislation that would have given the communications watchdog powers to regulate content on digital platforms and put social media companies on notice.
However, the bill fell by the wayside at the end of 2024 due to free speech concerns and criticism it would not adequately address the spread of deliberate lies.
Dr Chalmers said there were other ways to try to mitigate misinformation and disinformation.
The government is investing in news services such as the Australian Associated Press (AAP) - which runs a fact-checking service - and public broadcasters ABC and SBS, while encouraging Australians to get their news from trusted sources.
"These are the ways that we're trying to build the quality of our democracy and our media is a key part of that," Dr Chalmers said.
Meta's fact-checking program in the US will be replaced by a model used by X, formerly Twitter, where users add context or information to posts they deem misleading.
The social media company's contract with AAP FactCheck has not yet been impacted by the US decision and the service said its work will continue in 2025.
"Independent fact checkers are a vital safeguard against the spread of harmful misinformation and disinformation that threatens to undermine free democratic debate in Australia and aims to manipulate public opinion," chief executive Lisa Davies said.
Meta has claimed fact checkers are prone to bias and "a program intended to inform too often became a tool to censor".
Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young has said the Meta decision will create a trolling and misinformation "free-for-all" and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said tech companies "have a social responsibility" to the Australian public.
Stephen Scheeler, the former Facebook chief executive for Australia and New Zealand, said the move was "a step backwards for social media overall" but noted local sentiment towards fact checking differed from the US perspective, due in part to the re-election of Donald Trump.
"The political winds have now changed," he told the ABC.
"The idea of having third parties moderate that content is not fashionable in Washington, it's not fashionable with Donald Trump.
"(Meta chief executive) Mark Zuckerberg wants to get back in Donald Trump's good books."
It is not yet clear when Meta's changes will roll out and there are concerns they could impact the upcoming federal election.
But Australia's relatively short election cycles could dampen the impact of potentially harmful information.
"The less time misinformation has to flow, the less impact it can have," Mr Scheeler said.
Source: Fijian Broadcasting Corporation
