The Blubber

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, during an interview on Joe Rogan's podcast released Friday, alleged that his company faced pressure from the Biden administration to remove content related to Covid vaccine side effects.

In the three-hour conversation, Zuckerberg stated that he is "pretty pro rolling out vaccines" and believes they are "more positive than negative." However, he added, "While they’re trying to push that program, they also tried to censor anyone who is basically arguing against it."

A representative from the Biden administration did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Zuckerberg's remarks follow Meta's recent announcement that it will stop relying on third-party fact-checkers on its platforms, opting instead for a system of community notes. This change aligns Meta’s approach more closely with that of X (formerly Twitter), whose owner, Elon Musk, has been advising President-elect Donald Trump and was a significant supporter of his campaign.

Meta’s actions come amid a series of moves that appear aimed at accommodating the incoming Trump administration. Recently, Meta replaced its president of global affairs, Nick Clegg, with Joel Kaplan, a policy vice president and former Republican Party staffer. The company has also pledged $1 million toward Trump’s inauguration, according to NBC News.

In August, Zuckerberg expressed concerns in a letter to the Republican-led House Judiciary Committee, stating that the Biden administration "pressured" Meta to "censor" Covid-19-related content. He acknowledged regretting some decisions made in response to those requests.

“They pushed us super hard to take down things that, honestly, were true,” Zuckerberg told Rogan. “They basically said, ‘Anything that suggests vaccines might have side effects, you need to take down.’”

Zuckerberg did not identify specific White House officials involved, noting, “I wasn’t involved in those conversations directly.” However, he emphasized that Meta refused to remove content that was "inarguably true."

The FDA stated in 2021 that side effects of Johnson & Johnson’s single-shot Covid vaccine typically include headache, fatigue, muscle aches, nausea, and fever. Globally, Covid vaccines have been credited with saving millions of lives annually during the pandemic.

In a separate discussion, Zuckerberg criticized the U.S. government for not sufficiently supporting the domestic tech industry, which he said has ceded too much power to international regulators. He highlighted that the European Union has fined tech companies over $30 billion in the past two decades.

Expressing optimism about Trump’s leadership, Zuckerberg said, “One of the things I’m optimistic about with President Trump is I think he just wants America to win.”