Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta introduced a significant overhaul of its world coverage workforce on Thursday – pushing out left-leaning division chief Nick Clegg and changing him with the corporate’s best-known Republican, Joel Kaplan.
Kaplan, who as soon as served as deputy chief of employees for George W. Bush, is about to take over the reins of the Fb and Instagram proprietor simply days earlier than President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration.
Clegg, the former Liberal Democrat occasion chief within the UK, has led Meta’s coverage workforce since 2018 – a time when conservatives started ramping up claims that their viewpoints had been being suppressed by the social media large.
These efforts turned most evident when Fb suppressed The Submit’s reporting of the Hunter Biden laptop computer scandal shortly earlier than the 2020 election. The social media platform additionally banned Donald Trump following the Jan. 6 riots on the Capitol.
Nevertheless, the management shakeup is the newest signal of Zuckerberg’s ongoing effort to cozy as much as the president-elect. In November, the tech titan raced to Mar-a-Lago for dinner with Trump after reportedly requesting a gathering to debate “the incoming administration.”
Shortly after the assembly, Clegg mentioned that Zuckerberg was aiming to have “an active role in the debates that any administration needs to have about maintaining America’s leadership in the technological sphere … and particularly the pivotal role that AI will play.”
Meta additionally donated $1 million to Trump’s inaugural fund.
Zuckerberg thanked Clegg for his seven years of service in exhibiting him the door.
“I’ve learned so much working with you and our whole team is better for having this opportunity,” he wrote in a touch upon Clegg’s Fb submit asserting the transition.
“I’m excited for Joel to step into this role next given his deep experience and insight leading our policy work for many years.”
Clegg mentioned he can be “spending a few months handing over the reins” to Kaplan earlier than heading on to what he described as “new adventures.”
“I will be forever grateful to Mark and Sheryl Sandberg for taking me on in the first place – and to the many colleagues and teams I have had the good luck to work with ever since. It truly has been an adventure of a lifetime,” mentioned Clegg, whose exit was first reported by Semafor.
The controversial Clegg performed a significant function in shaping Meta’s dealing with of content material moderation and elections. He was additionally closely concerned within the creation of Meta’s Oversight Board – which has confronted sharp criticism in latest days for being biased towards Israel.
In an indication of his political leanings, Clegg publicly blasted Elon Musk at a September occasion – declaring that the X proprietor had turned the social media app previously often called Twitter into “a sort of one man, sort of hyper-partisan and ideological hobby horse.”
When requested about whether or not Meta ought to average content material on the time, Clegg mentioned: “We unavoidably have to.”
Kaplan is extensively seen as Meta’s main champion for conservatives – and has reportedly argued towards insurance policies that will disproportionately affect right-leaning viewpoints.
Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), a vocal critic of Massive Tech, praised Meta’s choice to raise Kaplan.
“I’ve known and respected Joel Kaplan for many years, and I’m confident he’ll continue to advocate for free speech and against censorship,” Cotton mentioned in an announcement.
The political stakes are excessive for Meta, which Trump had beforehand described as “the enemy of the people” because of alleged censorship and election interference.
Trump and his allies blasted Zuckerberg and Meta as lately as July, accusing the corporate of suppressing details about the tried assassination of the Republican presidential nominee at a July 13 rally.
