Meta doesn't stop at moderation changes. According to both axios and <a target="_blank" data-i13n="elm:context_link;elmt:doNotAffiliate;cpos:3;pos:1" class="link " href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/10/technology/meta-mark-zuckerberg-trump.html” rel=”nofollow noopener” target=”_blank” data-ylk=”slk:The New York Times;elm:context_link;elmt:doNotAffiliate;cpos:3;pos:1;itc:0;sec:content-canvas”>The New York TimesThe company is also canceling diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. That includes eliminating diversity hiring goals, eliminating the chief diversity officer position and no longer prioritizing minority-owned businesses as suppliers, according to The times' reports.
When asked to comment on the completion of DEI initiatives, Meta confirmed that the report was accurate.
Internally, the company apparently attributes the decision to a changing “legal and political landscape,” according to a memo to employees. axios acquired.
“The United States Supreme Court has recently made decisions that indicate a shift in how courts will address DEI,” Janelle Gale, vice president of Human Resources at Meta, says in the memo. “The term 'DEI' has also received criticism, in part because some understand it as a practice that suggests preferential treatment of some groups over others.”
The current Supreme Court is not exactly friendly toward systemic attempts to address issues of race, gender, and sexuality, but in the context of Meta's other recent changes, it appears there's more going on than the company's fear of a potential lawsuit.
At the same time as Mark Zuckerberg announced that Meta would abandon third-party fact-checking and change the type of speech it allows on its platform, 404 media reports that the company removed trans and non-binary themes from Messenger and the posts it made announcing them. The company also added Trump supporter and UFC CEO Dana White to its board this week, a confirmation of Zuckerberg's continued UFC fanaticism but also a sign that it's eager to listen to conservative voices. It all seems to come down to a reaction to the current climate and more to the way those responsible want to do business in the future.
