Report: Mark Zuckerberg Requests Government Rules On 'What Discourse Should Be Allowed'

Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg called on Western governments to provide regulatory guidance for how social media companies can identify the boundaries of "what discourse should be allowed" on their platforms.

"There should be more guidance and regulation from the states on basically -- take political advertising as an example -- what discourse should be allowed?" Zuckerberg told an assembly of Western leaders Saturday at the Munich Security Conference. "Or, on the balance of free expression and some things that people call harmful expression, where do you draw the line?"

Facebook has faced accusations of mismanagement since Russia launched a series of high-profile election interference operations against Western countries, most notably the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign. Sen. Josh Hawley, a Missouri Republican, said federal legislation is necessary to counteract anti-conservative "political censorship," while European Union officials are mulling antitrust proposals targeting Facebook.

"There are a lot of decisions in these areas that are really just balances between different social values," Zuckerberg said. "It's about coming up with an answer that society feels is legitimate and that they can get behind and understand that you drew the line here on the balance of free expression and safety. It's not just that there's one right answer. People need to feel like, 'OK, enough people weighed in, and that's why the answer should be this, and we can get behind that.'"