Zuckerberg apologies to Centre: Meta admits 'money paid to boost certain content'

Meta officials have apologized to the IT minister for removing a video of Prime Minister Narendra Modi from their platform. The video, which addressed students and Gen Z on examination controversies and action against paper leaks, was briefly removed from Facebook for approximately five to six hours before being restored. Joel Kaplan, Meta's chief global affairs officer, met with Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Wednesday to apologize for the error.

Additionally, Meta admitted to paying a significant amount of money to boost certain types of content to specific audiences, according to sources. The company now faces potential questions to its safe-harbour protection under the IT Act due to its active selection and distribution of content rather than merely hosting third-party content.

The development follows senior Meta executives meeting with government officials to discuss compliance with Indian laws, content moderation, child sexual abuse material (CSAM), and safeguards around AI-generated content. The government has requested Meta to explain its measures to tackle CSAM and monitor AI-generated content.