Facebook to rely on ‘Community Notes,’ replacing fact checkers, Zuckerberg says
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(NEW YORK) — Facebook plans to replace its fact checkers with “Community Notes,” a move that Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said would allow the social network to return “to our roots around free expression.”
“We’re replacing fact checkers with Community Notes, simplifying our policies and focusing on reducing mistakes,” Zuckerberg said on Tuesday. “Looking forward to this next chapter.”
The changes, which will also be in place for Instagram and Threads, will lift restrictions “on some topics that are part of mainstream discourse” and will focus the company’s “enforcement on illegal and high-severity violations,” Joel Kaplan, chief global affairs officer, said in a blog post.
As the company’s fact-checking capabilities have grown, they have expanded “to the point where we are making too many mistakes,” which in turn has frustrated many of the social networks’ users, Kaplan said.
“Too much harmless content gets censored, too many people find themselves wrongly locked up in ‘Facebook jail,’ and we are often too slow to respond when they do,” he said.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
ABC News’ Michael Kreisel and Zunaira Zaki contributed to this report.
(WASHINGTON) — Fresh inflation data set for release on Wednesday will provide an update on prices ahead of the holidays and help determine the outcome of an interest rate decision at the Federal Reserve slated for next week.
A monthslong slowdown of inflation came to an end when price increases accelerated in October, the most recent month for which data is available. The hot reading reversed some previous progress in lowering inflation and left price increases above the Fed’s target rate.
Economists expect consumer prices to have climbed 2.7% in November, which would amount to a slight uptick in price increases and mark two consecutive months of rising inflation.
The inflation gauge makes up the last piece of significant economic data before the Fed announces its next interest rate decision on Dec. 18. A finding of accelerated price hikes may give the Fed pause as it weighs interest rate cuts.
Inflation has slowed dramatically from a peak of more than 9% in June 2022, but price increases remain slightly above the target rate of 2%.
In recent months, the Fed has cut its benchmark rate three quarters of a percentage point, dialing back its yearslong fight against inflation and delivering relief for borrowers saddled with high costs.
The Fed is expected to cut interest rates by another quarter of a percentage point at its meeting next week, according to the CME FedWatch Tool, a measure of market sentiment.
Over time, rate cuts ease the burden on borrowers for everything from home mortgages to credit cards to cars, making it cheaper to get a loan or refinance one. The cuts also boost company valuations, potentially helping fuel returns for stockholders.
In theory, the policy eases access to funds, stimulates economic activity and boosts demand. But the promise of bolstered consumer strength risks increased prices.
Speaking at a press conference in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, Fed Chair Jerome Powell voiced optimism about the prospects for achieving a “soft landing,” in which the U.S. averts a recession while inflation returns to normal.
“We continue to be confident that with an appropriate recalibration of our policy stance, strength in the economy and labor market can be maintained with inflation moving sustainably down to 2%,” Powell said.
The trajectory of inflation could shift in the coming months. Some economists expect President-elect Donald Trump’s proposals of heightened tariffs and the mass deportation of undocumented immigrants to raise consumer prices.
When asked about the Fed’s potential response to Trump’s policies, Powell said the central bank would make its rate decisions based on how any policy changes impact the economy.
“In the near term, the election will have no effects on our policy decisions,” Powell said. “We don’t know what the timing and substance of any policy changes will be. We therefore don’t know what the effects on the economy will be.”
“We don’t guess, we don’t speculate and we don’t assume,” Powell added.
(NEW YORK) — The U.S. economy grew at a robust pace over three months ending in September, slowing slightly from the previous quarter but continuing to dispel any concern about a possible slowdown. The fresh report marks one of the last major pieces of economic data before the presidential election.
U.S. GDP grew at a 2.8% annualized rate over three months ending in September. That figure fell slightly below economists’ expectations.
Economic growth was fueled by surge in consume spending, an uptick in exports and strong federal government spending, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis said.
The new data arrived weeks after the Federal Reserve cut its benchmark interest rate a half of a percentage point. The landmark decision dialed back a years-long fight against inflation and offered relief for borrowers saddled with high costs.
Inflation has slowed dramatically from a peak of about 9% in 2022, though it remains slightly higher than the Fed’s target of 2%.
Meanwhile, the labor market has proven resilient. Employers hired 254,000 workers in September, far exceeding economist expectations of 150,000 jobs added, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data showed. The unemployment rate ticked down to 4.1%, hovering near a 50-year low.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(NEW YORK) — Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, is rolling back its diversity, equity and inclusion policies.
This brings it in line with several major corporations that have reviewed their operational practices after facing considerable pressure from conservatives.
No longer considering race and gender as a way to increase diversity when it offers supplier contracts, is an example of the retailer’s reported rollbacks, according to the Associated Press.
The company said it didn’t currently have quotas and didn’t plan to going forward; however, it planned to stop collecting demographic data when determining financing eligibility for grants.
In a statement to ABC News, Walmart said, “Our purpose, to help people save money and live better, has been at our core since our founding 62 years ago and continues to guide us today. We can deliver on it because we are willing to change alongside our associates and customers who represent all of America.”
“We’ve been on a journey and know we aren’t perfect,” the statement continued, “but every decision comes from a place of wanting to foster a sense of belonging, to open doors to opportunities for all our associates, customers and suppliers and to be a Walmart for everyone.”
Walmart will also be “reviewing grants to Pride events to make sure it is not financially supporting sexualized content targeting kids,” the retail giant told AP.
The changes also extend to Walmart’s sizable third-party marketplace.
For example, those third-party retailers would no longer be able to list and sell “sexual and transgender products aimed at minors,” the company said. An example is chest binders for young people who may be using the products as part of their gender-affirming care.
The world’s largest retailer confirmed the changes on Monday.
They were first announced in a post on X by conservative political commentator Robby Starbuck.
He said that he had been in touch with the Arkansas-based corporation about a story he was doing about “wokeness,” which turned into “productive conversations” — and, ultimately, led to reversals in Walmart’s approaches to DEI.
Other changes that Starbuck listed in his announcement included: discontinuing racial equity training through the Racial Equity Institute, no longer participating in the Human Rights Coalition’s Corporate Equity Index (a national benchmarking tool for LGBTQ individuals) and eliminating the use of Latinx (a gender-neutral word for anyone of Latin descent).
He also stated that Walmart will be eliminating the use of the phrase “DEI” altogether.
“This is the biggest win yet for our movement to end wokeness in corporate America,” wrote Starbuck, who has also gone after companies including Boeing, Lowe’s, Tractor Supply and Deere & Co.
