Source: European Parliament
Question for written answer E-000423/2025
to the Commission
Rule 144
Sandro Ruotolo (S&D), Lucia Annunziata (S&D), Brando Benifei (S&D), Annalisa Corrado (S&D), Camilla Laureti (S&D), Alessandra Moretti (S&D), Pina Picierno (S&D), Cecilia Strada (S&D), Marco Tarquinio (S&D), Raffaele Topo (S&D), Alessandro Zan (S&D), Alex Agius Saliba (S&D), Laura Ballarín Cereza (S&D), Estelle Ceulemans (S&D), Raphaël Glucksmann (S&D), Maria Grapini (S&D), Evin Incir (S&D), Pierre Jouvet (S&D), Murielle Laurent (S&D), Ana Catarina Mendes (S&D), Matjaž Nemec (S&D), Maria Noichl (S&D), Leire Pajín (S&D), Chloé Ridel (S&D), Joanna Scheuring-Wielgus (S&D), Andreas Schieder (S&D), Krzysztof Śmiszek (S&D), Elisabetta Gualmini (S&D), Giuseppe Lupo (S&D), Nicola Zingaretti (S&D), Dario Nardella (S&D), Elisabeth Grossmann (S&D)
On 7 January 2025, Mark Zuckerberg announced that fact-checking would no longer be carried out for Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp in the United States.
If this decision were applied to the EU, it would violate the Digital Services Act[1], which imposes obligations on online platforms to counter disinformation. It could facilitate the spread of fake news and hate speech, undermining trust in online information and compromising public safety. Young people, who mainly inform themselves on social media, are particularly highly exposed to fake news and manipulation, making the platforms’ obligation to ensure transparency and reliability all the more urgent.
These concerns were expressed by Reporters Without Borders and the European Federation of Journalists, who sent a letter to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, urging decisive action. In a context where platforms such as X manipulate algorithms to amplify divisive content and political narratives, the EU must ensure that citizens’ rights and democratic principles are protected.
In the light of these developments, the Commission is asked:
- 1.What action will it take, including sanctions under the Digital Services Act, to counter the new policy adopted by Meta?
- 2.Will it open an investigation to assess whether this decision would violate Article 35 of the Digital Services Act if applied in the EU?
Submitted: 30.1.2025
- [1] Regulation (EU) 2022/2065 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 October 2022 on a Single Market For Digital Services and amending Directive 2000/31/EC (Digital Services Act) (OJ L 277, 27.10.2022, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2022/2065/oj).