Tech giant Meta Platforms has announced the appointment of prominent Republican Joel Kaplan as its chief global affairs officer, replacing Nick Clegg, as confirmed by Clegg in a post on the social media platform Threads on Thursday. The transition is set to take place in the lead-up to President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration. Kaplan will succeed Clegg, a former British deputy prime minister and previous leader of the country’s Liberal Democrats.
Clegg joined Meta in 2018 to oversee its global policy organization, where he played a pivotal role in addressing key issues such as Facebook’s content policy and electoral matters. He also played a central role in establishing the company’s independent content oversight board.
At the time of reporting, Kaplan had not responded to Reuters’ request for comment. Semafor had previously reported on Kaplan’s impending appointment.
In the wake of President Trump’s November election victory, businesses across various sectors have been moving swiftly to cultivate positive relationships with the incoming administration. Meta disclosed a $1 million donation to Trump’s inaugural fund in December, according to a company representative. This came after Meta’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg had declined to publicly support either Donald Trump or Joe Biden in last year’s election during an interview with the media. It is worth noting that this interview took place prior to Biden replacing Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee.
However, tensions have arisen between Trump and Meta following the 2020 presidential election. The president-elect has accused Meta of suppressing content that could have had a negative impact on Biden’s electoral prospects. Additionally, Trump has criticized Zuckerberg’s financial contributions aimed at strengthening election infrastructure.
Reporting by Arsheeya Bajwa in Bengaluru; Editing by Alan Barona
