According to the New York Times, in a meeting with Stephen Miller – an adviser to Donald Trump – in late 2024, Mark Zuckerberg blamed Sandberg for inclusive policies that encouraged employees to express themselves in the workplace. Sandberg was Meta's CEO for more than 14 years and left last May.

Zuckerberg also pledged that he would do nothing to impede Trump’s agenda. Trump has been unsympathetic to the diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives that American businesses have pursued. Meta’s CEO assured that the upcoming layoffs and new regulations will create change at the company.

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Sheryl Sandberg (left) poses with Mark Zuckerberg in a photo celebrating 8 years working at Meta. Photo: Facebook

Meta recently ended its third-party content verification service and inclusion initiatives, part of an effort to align its platforms with the incoming administration.

Zuckerberg appears to be looking to repair his relationship with Trump ahead of his second term. Earlier this month, Meta replaced its global head of public affairs, Nick Clegg, with Republican-friendly Joel Kaplan, and added the president’s close friend, CEO Dana White, to its board.

The Facebook founder also donated $1 million to the inauguration fund and is expected to attend the inauguration ceremony with Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos.

Wave of DEI Initiative Recall

Diversity, equity, and inclusion programs have become increasingly controversial in the United States. Billionaires like Elon Musk began attacking DEI initiatives in late 2023. Trump has also criticized them, and when he returns to the White House, he is likely to reinstate an executive order issued in 2020 that banned diversity training for government and nonprofit organizations.

Since Trump won the 2024 election, companies like Walmart and McDonald's have scaled back their diversity efforts, according to Fortune . Meta did the same, announcing it was ending its DEI programs. Internal memos said this was in response to changes in the legal and policy environment surrounding DEI efforts in the United States.

Meta also overhauled its content moderation policies to restore “freedom of expression” on social media platforms. Last week, Zuckerberg said content moderation had gone too far. However, his decision was met with opposition from employees and content verification organizations.

(According to Fortune)