In part because of his goofy appearance and in part because he doesn't engage in fascist trolling like fellow billionaire Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg is rarely seen as a sinister character in modern American life. But Zuckerberg's announcement that Facebook and Instagram will soon cease fact-checking is such a stellar model of villainous doublespeak that George Orwell would have thought it was a bit much. Zuckerberg insisted it's in the name of "free speech" that he must unleash uncontrolled disinformation on his platform, adding, "The recent elections also feel like a cultural tipping point towards, once again, prioritizing speech."

It's bad enough when leaders like Trump and Musk, who are at least open about their authoritarian beliefs, tell their followers that it's okay to ignore facts and believe whatever feels emotionally satisfying. When someone like Zuckerberg — who has long presented as moderate or even liberal — says it, it furthers this normalization of dishonesty.

Yep, he is saying Donald Trump is a "free speech" champion, saying the company plans to "work with President Trump" in what sounds very much like bullying countries that have more stringent laws banning false information and hate speech. Of course, Trump is a stalwart enemy of free speech and the First Amendment. Trump has repeatedly threatened to imprison journalists or use government power to shut down news organizations that publish unflattering information about him. The president-elect routinely uses baseless defamation lawsuits to punish journalists for reporting his actions.

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