A major ally of President-elect Donald Trump and outspoken free speech advocate has joined the board of one of Big Tech’s most censorship-obsessed companies.
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) CEO Dana White confirmed Monday that he will join Meta’s board of directors. He shared screenshots on X of a headline and statements from himself and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announcing the surprising development. “I love social media. And I’m excited to be a small part of the future of AI and emerging technologies,” White posted. 
It is unclear if White’s appointment is yet another move from Meta to appease the incoming Trump administration, which is set to take a hard line on opposing censorship. It also remains unclear whether this signals genuine reform.
White refused to police free speech within UFC. In January 2024, White hit back at suggestions that he restricted UFC fighters’ speech, emphatically declaring, “To control what people say, and to tell people what to believe? I don't f***ing tell any other human being what to say, what to think, and there's no leashes on any of 'em.”
He added, “That's ridiculous to say I give somebody a leash. Free speech, brother. People can say whatever they want, and they can believe whatever they want.” This starkly contrasts with Meta’s history of censorship. In fact, MRC ranked Meta platforms among the worst censors of 2024 for its biased, election-interfering censorship, including targeting iconic images of the attempted assassination of Trump.
In his statement on X, White said he is a “huge believer that social media and AI are the future” and expressed his determination to “take Meta to the next level,” as he “love[s]… building brands.” Zuckerberg, meanwhile, announced three new board members and praised White as building “one of the most valuable, fastest growing, and most popular sports enterprises in the world. I’ve admired him as an entrepreneur.”
White’s appointment isn’t the only recent change at Meta. Indeed, Zuckerberg announced a whole slate of changes Tuesday including changing Meta’s fact checking program and allowing more political content. Republican Joel Kaplan was elevated earlier this month as head of global policy, replacing aggressive censor Nick Clegg. Also, former George W. Bush appointee Kevin Martin recently became Meta vice president of global public policy.
But back in 2021, Meta banned Trump from Facebook and Instagram, a ban that remained in place for about two years. But after Trump’s 2024 election win, Zuckerberg was among the tech CEOs who hurried to meet the president-elect at his Florida estate.
Conservatives are under attack. Contact Facebook headquarters at (650) 308-7300 and demand that Big Tech be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency, clarity on “misinformation” and equal footing for conservatives. If you have been censored, contact us using CensorTrack’s contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
