Zuckerberg slams Biden for censoring vaccine opposition, takes aim at Apple in Rogan interview
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg criticized the administration of outgoing President Joe Biden for “brutal” attempts to remove posts about vaccine side effects from Facebook, calling it a violation of free speech.
Zuckerberg praised President-elect Donald Trump, saying he wants “America to win” and criticized Apple’s high fees and lack of innovation.
The social media mogul announced that Dana White, a prominent Trump ally, had been added to Meta’s board of directors.
The interview highlights the ongoing debate about the balance between free speech and public health on social media platforms.
Zuckerberg’s comments underscore the complex and often contradictory nature of the tech industry’s power and influence, raising questions about regulation and responsibility.
In a wide-ranging interview with podcaster Joe Rogan, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg criticized the Biden administration for what he called “brutal” attempts to silence opposition to the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccines.
The nearly three-hour sit-down released on Jan. 10 also saw Zuckerberg praise President-elect Donald Trump and take swipes at tech rival Apple.
The interview, which began with Zuckerberg wearing a brown T-shirt and gold chain, focused heavily on Biden administration officials’ alleged attempts to remove posts about vaccine side effects from Facebook. Zuckerberg, who appeared to lean more conservative than in previous interviews, told Rogan that officials had called Meta executives and “screamed” and “cursed” at them to remove negative posts about the COVID-19 vaccine.
“The U.S. government should be defending its companies, not be at the tip of the spear attacking its companies,” Zuckerberg said.
Zuckerberg’s comments echoed his testimony before Congress in the summer, where he admitted that the Biden administration had pressured the company to remove posts about vaccine side effects. However, he did not specify if these phone calls were recorded. During the interview, Zuckerberg said that the officials wanted Meta to remove posts that correctly stated that the vaccines could induce side effects.
“It was brutal,” Zuckerberg said. “Basically it just got to this point [where we told them], ‘No, we’re not going to take down this thing that was true.'”
Zuckerberg praises Trump and criticizes Apple
The interview also saw Zuckerberg take a more supportive stance on Trump.
“I think he just wants America to win,” Zuckerberg said, drawing criticism from left-leaning circles.
However, the Meta CEO also took several swipes at Apple, the Cupertino-based tech giant that has been a frequent target of criticism from rivals and regulators. Zuckerberg said that Apple hadn’t “really invented anything great in a while” and took issue with the company’s 30 percent fees on transactions within its App Store.
“The number of sales, I think, has generally been flat to declining. So how are they making more money as a company? They do it by basically squeezing people and having this 30 percent tax on developers,” Zuckerberg said.
In a move that drew criticism from left-leaning circles, Zuckerberg also announced that Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) boss Dana White, a prominent Trump ally, had been added to Meta’s board of directors. Zuckerberg praised White as “awesome” and an “amazing entrepreneur” who had turned mixed martial arts into a mainstream sport.
“The conversation I had with him around joining our board was, ‘We have a lot of governments and folks around the world putting a lot of pressure on our company. We need strong people who are gonna basically advise us on how to handle some of these situations,'” Zuckerberg said.
The interview comes at a time when Zuckerberg and Meta are facing increased scrutiny from regulators and critics alike. The company has been criticized for its handling of misinformation and its impact on democracy, particularly in the wake of the 2020 U.S. presidential election.
The Biden administration’s alleged attempts to silence opposition to the COVID-19 vaccine have also raised concerns about the role of government in regulating social media platforms. Zuckerberg’s comments, while not providing concrete evidence of censorship, highlight the ongoing debate about the balance between free speech and public health.
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