To the Shareholders of Meta,

As physicians, nurses and medical professionals, we urge you, the shareholders of Meta (the parent corporation of Facebook), to support governance reforms to combat the rampant misinformation and disinformation enabled by the corporation. Ahead of the Meta Annual General Meeting on May 25th, we implore you to hold Mark Zuckerberg, who serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors, CEO, and the largest shareholder, accountable for allowing harm to continue against our patients and the health of the public in general.

We specifically ask you, as shareholders, to pass Proposal #14 during your upcoming general meeting: “Shareholders request the Board commission an independent assessment of the Audit and Risk Oversight Committee’s capacities and performance in overseeing company risks to public safety and the public interest and in supporting strategic risk oversight on these issues by the full board.”

In our exam rooms and our hospitals, we’ve seen the detrimental impact that the mis- and disinformation circulated like wildfire across Meta’s platforms has had on individuals and communities alike. Disinformation undermines safe and effective disease control such as childhood vaccinations, which is down 11 million in 2021 compared with the previous year. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has shone an even brighter light on how the unfettered spreading of false information can and does put people’s health, safety and lives at risk.

Medical professionals like us see this dangerous dynamic at work every day: Patients who refuse to wear masks, reject vaccinations, ignore public health safeguards such as social distancing and quarantining, and more. Rejection of evidence-based, peer-reviewed and data-driven medical and scientific information, as we have seen and continue to see in the context of COVID-19, carries real-world health consequences and is the direct result of the spread of misinformation and disinformation on social media platforms.

Furthermore, we’re also seeing increased harm to the mental and emotional health of children and teenagers resulting from Meta’s products. Facebook and Instagram algorithms drive youth toward harmful content, which can lead to body image issues, substance use, self-injury, depression, and other mental health issues.

For these reasons and more, we specifically ask you, as shareholders, to pass Proposal #14 during your upcoming general meeting. This proposal will request the Board commission an independent assessment of the Audit and Risk Oversight Committee’s capacities and performance in overseeing company risks to public safety and the public interest and in supporting strategic risk oversight on these issues by the full board.

Meta has a responsibility to address its role in public safety and hold Mr. Zuckerberg accountable because disinformation and misinformation spread fastest on Facebook, compared with all other social media platforms. Health misinformation and disinformation was viewed 4 billion times on Facebook in 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic surged across the globe.

To date, under Mr. Zuckerberg’s stranglehold, the company refuses to address the challenge of reining in misinformation and improving adolescent mental health. Meta has thus far refused to acknowledge the scope of these problems, let alone the catastrophic consequences of allowing disinformation and misinformation to continue proliferating. A leaked Facebook memo confirmed that COVID-19 denial and anti-vax information is under-reported, under-represented. A Facebook whistleblower highlighted the company’s refusal to address the harmful algorithms for adolescents.

As shareholders, you can demand accountability at Meta to reduce and ultimately eliminate disinformation, misinformation, and harmful algorithms for young people. A corporation with the resources, technical ability, expertise and funds such as Meta can and should do more to end misinformation, restore trust in facts and science, and promote better mental health among kids and teens. As physicians and health professionals deeply concerned about our patients, their families and our communities, we ask you to use your position and help us protect and save lives.

Signed: