Following Mark Zuckerberg’s **[declaration that Meta will cease fact-checking content](https://mashable.com/article/meta-ditches-fact-checking-for-community-notes)**, Google is clarifying its position to the European Union: the tech powerhouse is opting out of a new EU initiative that requires fact-checking.

While certain tech firms may currently feel empowered to make such policy changes, possibly to align with the political atmosphere under President-elect Donald Trump, Google’s circumstances are somewhat distinct. The company has not fully embedded fact-checking into its search engine or YouTube, which it owns. Thus, Google’s choice is not a reversal of existing approaches but rather a decision to refrain from amplifying its efforts in this domain.

A correspondence from Kent Walker, Google’s president of global affairs, sent to Renate Nikolay, the European Commission’s head of content and technology, was acquired by **[Axios](https://www.axios.com/2025/01/16/google-fact-check-eu)**. In this letter, Google explicitly rejects the EU’s Code of Practice on Disinformation.

The code, which is voluntary and lacks legal enforcement, would obligate Google to integrate fact-checking mechanisms within its search engine rankings and YouTube algorithms. Although platforms like Google, Meta, and Twitter (before Elon Musk’s takeover) previously consented to the code, adherence has been irregular. As **[The Verge](https://www.theverge.com/2025/1/17/24345747/google-eu-dsa-fact-checks-disinformation-code-search-youtube)** points out, even prior to Meta’s recent policy change, the European Fact-Checking Standards Network **[highlighted](https://efcsn.com/news/2024-01-24_cop-review/)** that many platforms were “reneging on their commitments.”

The Code of Practice on Disinformation predates the EU’s legally enforceable Digital Services Act (DSA), which was implemented in 2022. The DSA establishes more stringent content moderation regulations, raising inquiries about whether aspects of the disinformation code will eventually be included in the DSA framework. If so, it is uncertain how major tech firms will react.

In its letter, Google expressed that it would “withdraw from all fact-checking commitments in the Code before it transitions to a DSA Code of Conduct.” This indicates the company’s intention to evade deeper obligations amidst the shifting regulatory environment in the EU.