After Meta completed an independent fact-check, Google searches for how to delete Facebook, Instagram, and Threads accounts spiked
Meta has announced that it will discontinue its independent fact-checking system and switch to censorship through community notes. However, the abolition of fact-checking has led to a surge in Google searches for how to delete Meta's Facebook, Instagram, and Threads accounts.
Google searches for deleting Facebook, Instagram explode after Meta ends fact-checking | TechCrunch
In January 2025, Meta announced that it would abolish fact-checking by an independent organization established to prevent the spread of misinformation on Facebook and move to content censorship by community notes like X (formerly Twitter). Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg explained the reason for abolishing fact-checking as 'too often hindering the 'freedom of expression' we were aiming for,' and details of the transition are summarized in the following article.
Meta's Mark Zuckerberg declares 'returning to the origins of freedom of expression,' announcing the end of fact-checking functionality and a shift to a community note format - GIGAZINE
Critics see Meta's change of policy as an attempt to pander to President-elect Trump and avoid political retaliation, and also point out that Meta's decision to remove fact-checking could have serious repercussions, allowing violent content and misinformation to spread more quickly on its platform.
Since Meta announced that it would discontinue fact-checking, the number of users searching for phrases such as 'how to delete Facebook completely' on Google has skyrocketed. For example, when examining the popularity of 'how to delete Facebook' and 'how to delete Instagram' on Google Trends , 'how to delete Facebook' has achieved the highest score of 100 (the number represents the relative search interest based on the highest value on the graph for a specific region and time period. 100 indicates that the keyword is the most popular).
Other search terms that have skyrocketed include 'how to delete all photos facebook,' 'alternative to facebook,' 'how to quit facebook,' 'how to delete threads account,' and 'how to delete instagram account without logging in,' with some increasing in popularity by more than 5,000% compared to previous years.
Below is a ranking of search terms related to 'how to delete facebbok' in the United States that are experiencing a rapid increase in search volume. The search terms 'bluesky' and 'alternative to facebook,' which could be alternatives to Facebook, and 'Breakout' (over 5000%) are also rapidly increasing.
Bluesky and Mastodon are gaining attention as alternatives to Facebook and Instagram, and the number of searches for these two terms has also skyrocketed since the announcement that they would no longer be fact-checking.
Mastodon CEO Eugene Rocco said Meta's content moderation policy changes 'are a concern for anyone of conscience,' and warned users that anyone who crossposts from Threads to Mastodon via the Fediverse sharing feature will be 'monitored by Mastodon' for hate speech and violations of the platform's policies.
