Zuckerberg, Meta throw $25 million at Trump in lawsuit settlement

Mark Zuckerberg's Meta engaged in one of its recent core competencies today—outright capitulation—having suddenly decided to settle a lawsuit with Donald Trump that's been running since 2021 by giving the recently re-elected politician $25 million. (Said funds will largely be donated to the foundation to build Trump's presidential library, a building that we are sure, when the time to break ground comes along, will look like the direct and obvious recipient of all this lawsuit settlement largesse.)

The settlement (in a case centered on the decision to ban Trump's Facebook account over allegations that he used the platform to help incite violence during the January 6, 2021 riots) is just the most expensive of Zuckerberg's recent and overt efforts to get himself some tummy rubs from the White House. Case in point: He also recently announced that Facebook was ditching fact-checking, and, in an earnings call to investors today, praised the Trump administration as one that "prioritizes American technology winning." Per reports, the settlement doesn't force Meta to admit to any wrongdoing; suggestions that it does require Zuckerberg to "stop hitting yourself, stop hitting yourself, nerd" remain unconfirmed as we go to press.

Facebook's decision to settle comes not long after Disney made a similar call, settling an ABC News lawsuit Trump had brought against it for $15 million. (There have also been reports that Paramount is considering a similar tactic for an ongoing CBS News suit. This is going to be a really nice fucking library.) News of the settlement comes alongside a Wall Street Journal report outlining a campaign by Zuckerberg to get himself back into Trump's good graces, having reportedly been told that settling the suit was a prerequisite to being "brought into the tent." Sadly, not everyone saw Zuckerberg's decision to give in to Trump's demands in the same light of simple dedication to excellent library construction: Senator Elizabeth Warren said in a statement that the payment "Looks like a bribe and a signal to every company that corruption is the name of the game."

[via NPR]