A group of prominent lawmakers sent a letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg Thursday asking the company to delay its shutdown of CrowdTangle by six months.
In their letter, the lawmakers argued that Meta’s plan to replace it with its own Meta Content Library raises issues.
“We urge Meta to, at a minimum, postpone this plan for six months and provide further information about its plans and commitment to ensure sufficient transparency for independent research going forward,” the letter, signed by 17 members of Congress from across the political spectrum, read.
Meta Content Library will be more exclusive than CrowdTangle, with only select researchers getting access to its tools.
The lawmakers also noted that Meta’s replacement plans are too vague and require more details on who will have access to Meta Content Library. They said Meta has until Aug. 12 to respond.
Meta has owned and controlled CrowdTangle after acquiring the company in 2016. The tool has been used by activists, researchers, marketers and journalists to track what is trending on Meta’s platforms.
Over the years, data extracted from CrowdTangle has been cited to suggest that Meta’s platforms emphasize aggressive political content. Meta has pushed back against these claims and in March announced plans to shutter CrowdTangle by Aug. 14.
• Vaughn Cockayne can be reached at vcockayne@washingtontimes.com.
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