Meta Platforms Inc. announced Nick Clegg’s resignation as president of global affairs and the appointment of Joel Kaplan as its new policy chief. This promotion was made to a longtime executive with strong Republican connections, just ahead of Trump’s 2nd inauguration.
Clegg stated in a post shared on Facebook that he was “proud of the work that I did to lead and support teams within the organization in order for continued innovation to go along with increased accountability, transparency, and new forms of government.” “My time at the company coincided with a significant reset in the relationship between the big tech sector and the societal needs manifested through new laws, institutions, and norms.”
Clegg previously served as the UK’s Vice Prime Minister and Leader of the Liberal Democrats, before joining Meta in 2018 as its lobbying director. Since then, Facebook faced increased regulatory scrutiny, multiple antitrust lawsuits, as well criticism regarding the impact of Instagram on society and children. Clegg’s role was expanded to include boosting the company’s communication and policy initiatives.
Kevin Martin, Meta’s former Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission and Vice President for US Public Policy, will succeed Kaplan as Global Vice President. Martin, a former chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, is Meta’s Global VP. This move was made to attract well-connected Republicans to Meta as global VPs as Donald Trump prepares for his Oval Office takeover next month.
Menlo Park’s company has quietly been working to mend its damaged relationship with Trump. Trump has claimed for years that Meta and other social media platforms censor conservative speech. The accusations were aggravated by the fact that Facebook had blocked Trump after the riots in the US Capitol, on January 6, 2021. Trump has since been reinstated.
“I consider Facebook to be an enemy of the people,” Trump said on the campaign trail in 2024, suggesting he would reverse a looming ban on rival social media app TikTok to undercut Meta.
Meta has made personnel changes just three weeks prior to Trump’s inauguration. Mark Zuckerberg, Meta’s Chief Executive Officer, also had dinner with Trump in Mar-A-Lago a few days earlier.
Kaplan joined Meta in 2015. He has advocated more political speech. Martin was a Bush Campaign lawyer who joined Meta the following year. She helped guide the company’s response to the Cambridge Analytica controversy that rocked the 2016 election.
Clegg, a former member of the European Parliament, joined Facebook in 2018. Clegg was a former European Parliament member who joined Facebook in 2018. Clegg used his experience with the British Government to lead the company’s lobbying effort.
Clegg is set to take on the role Sheryl Sandberg vacated in 2022 as Meta’s Chief Operations Officer. He stated that he would spend “a few months handing over” the Meta reins and then move on to “new adventures”.
