FACT CHECK: No letter from Meta’s Zuckerberg to House lawmakers on social media safety

No reports confirm that Zuckerberg released a letter addressed to the Philippines’ House of Representatives; House lawmakers have also not summoned Zuckerberg, according to the DICT

AT A GLANCE

• Mark Zuckerberg did not write a letter responding to the Philippine House of Representatives regarding a congressional hearing on social media safety, as claimed by multiple Facebook users.
• The Department of Information and Communications Technology clarified that no official summons was issued for Zuckerberg to appear before lawmakers.
• The misinformation originated from an AI-generated profile on Instagram.

This is AI-generated. Read the article for full context. Report any errors.

Claim: Meta’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Mark Zuckerberg penned a letter responding to the Philippine House of Representatives’ call for him to appear at a congressional hearing on social media safety.

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: Multiple Facebook users posted an alleged letter from Zuckerberg, in which he purportedly responded to the House’s supposed summons for him to appear at a congressional hearing to address concerns over online safety hazards.

An excerpt of the supposed letter reads: “You say our platform is causing harm to society. With all due respect, Facebook does not create every lie, scam, or political conspiracy. Filipinos do that themselves. We simply provide the Wi-Fi, the buttons, the comment section, and that little blue thumbs-up.”

“And just for the record, I am an American citizen, sitting here in the United States. Philippine laws do not automatically apply to me simply because a Filipino congressman sends me a summons,” the letter continues.

It adds, “I’d be happy to testify provided the entire hearing is livestreamed on Facebook.”

The posts had combined 5,600 reactions, 1,755 comments, and 1,620 shares as of writing, with many users still reposting the letter.

The facts: No official public statements, credible news reports, or posts on Zuckerberg’s official social media accounts show that the Meta CEO posted a letter addressed to the Philippine Congress. Furthermore, the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) has clarified that the House has not issued an official summons directing Zuckerberg to appear before lawmakers — retracting its earlier “breaking news” post on September 18.

The alleged Zuckerberg letter began circulating online after the DICT made its now-deleted post announcing that the House called on the Meta CEO to respond to its concerns surrounding harmful online content and platform accountability. Adobo Chronicles, which describes itself as a satirical website, published the alleged letter, which has been reposted by several other users. While some posts label the supposed letter as satire, others do not.

One such version of the reposted letter was made on Instagram by an AI-generated profile on September 19. It posed the letter as a hypothetical answer to the now-retracted DICT announcement.

On September 21, the DICT clarified that “no House resolution was issued directing or inviting Meta or its Chief Executive Officer, Mark Zuckerberg, to appear before the House in relation to the hearing.”

Deferred budget: On September 16, the House deferred action on the DICT and its attached agencies’ proposed P19.49-billion budget for 2027 pending resolution of issues involving online safety.

According to the DICT, the issues with Meta were related to online sexual abuse and exploitation of children, as well as online illegal gambling, cyberbullying, social media addiction, depression, and related mental health risks.

In a Facebook post, the DICT said that Meta “continues to fall short of its responsibility and commitment to youth safety.”

Violence in children: Meta has been under intense scrutiny for its platforms’ role in the recent incidents of school violence in the country in 2026.

The platform drew criticism after failing to promptly remove the livestream showing the student gunman during the Zamboanga school shooting on August 18.

On August 28, Senator Risa Hontiveros noted Meta’s commitment to provide Philippine law enforcement with user data when there are imminent threats of violence. – Eirene Manatlao/Rappler.com 

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