Mark Zuckerberg became public enemy number one for conservatives.
The tech mogul censored and deplatformed millions.
And Eric Trump revealed one shocking moment with Mark Zuckerberg that changed everything.
Inauguration Day brought surprising interaction
Eric Trump witnessed something at his father's inauguration that he never thought he'd see.
Mark Zuckerberg approached him in what Eric described as "a really friendly way" and delivered a message that left him stunned.¹
"He came up to me in a really friendly way. I'll never forget this, and I legitimately believe he meant it, and he kind of checked me with his shoulder, right? Like, and he goes, 'Let's freaking go. Let's go!' And he had his hand out and he was like half hugging me and we're shaking hands," Eric told Miranda Devine on the Pod Force One podcast.¹
The encounter marked a dramatic shift from just years earlier when Meta platforms aggressively censored Donald Trump and his supporters.
Zuckerberg had banned the sitting President from Facebook and Instagram following January 6, 2021, in what Trump later sued as "impermissible censorship."
The ban lasted over two years before Meta eventually lifted it in early 2023.
Tech mogul's transformation from censor to ally
Eric's previous relationship with Zuckerberg couldn't have been more different.
The first son had "detested" the Meta CEO for the rampant censorship that targeted his father and conservative voices across the platform.
Facebook search-suppressed Eric's own social media accounts around the 2020 election.
Zuckerberg also dropped more than $400 million in so-called "Zuckerbucks" into elections around the country in 2020, funding that many argued violated campaign finance laws.²
An MRC Free Speech America study documented 39 ways that Facebook interfered in elections since 2008, with 17 of them involving the 2020 election specifically.¹
"A lot of people would argue that was in violation of campaign finance laws and everything else," Eric explained, referencing Facebook's suppression of polling information and biased search results that heavily favored Joe Biden.¹
The censorship extended beyond just politicians to ordinary Americans who dared question COVID-19 lockdowns or election integrity.
Zuckerberg later admitted that senior Biden administration officials "repeatedly pressured" Facebook for months to censor certain COVID-19 content, including humor and satire.³
From apology to alliance
The turning point came in August 2024 when Zuckerberg reportedly called Donald Trump to apologize.
Trump survived an assassination attempt on July 13, 2024, and was photographed pumping his fist in the air with blood running down his face.
Meta initially censored the iconic photo, incorrectly labeling it as "altered" content.
Zuckerberg called Trump personally to apologize for the mistake and praised him for his reaction to the shooting, calling it "one of the most badass things I've ever seen in my life."⁴
Trump revealed that Zuckerberg told him he couldn't support a Democrat in the 2024 election because of the respect he gained for Trump after the assassination attempt.⁴
"He said, 'That was really amazing, it was very brave,'" Trump explained during a Fox Business interview.⁴
By January 2025, Meta had agreed to pay Trump $25 million to settle his 2021 federal lawsuit over the Facebook and Instagram suspensions.⁵
The company ended its fact-checking program and Zuckerberg donated $1 million to Trump's inaugural fund.⁵
What Zuckerberg's transformation really means
Eric Trump told Devine that he believed Zuckerberg's change of heart was genuine.
"All of a sudden in 2024 it seemed like he was a different person," Eric said.¹
"I think he was sincere because I think he realized how badly they were misled. I think he realized how wrong he was," Eric continued.¹
But here's what Eric's being too generous about. Zuckerberg didn't suddenly discover the value of free speech.
He saw Trump's landslide victory and realized Silicon Valley backed the wrong horse. That enthusiastic shoulder check at the inauguration? That's the behavior of someone who knows he needs to get right with the new sheriff in town before the consequences catch up with him.
The timeline tells the real story. Zuckerberg censored Trump for years while Biden was in power. The moment Trump survived an assassination attempt and his poll numbers exploded, suddenly Zuckerberg's calling with apologies and praise.
By election night, when Trump's victory became undeniable, Meta was already ending fact-checking programs and writing $25 million settlement checks.⁵
That's not a crisis of conscience. That's cold calculation from a billionaire who understands power better than most people in Washington.
Zuckerberg watched what happened when Big Tech declared war on half of America. Facebook's stock tanked. Congress came calling. The Supreme Court started asking uncomfortable questions about government collusion. And Trump promised there would be consequences.
Every Silicon Valley CEO is now scrambling to repair relationships with Trump before the regulatory hammer drops. Zuckerberg's just smart enough to know that being first in line beats being last.
The $400 million he spent influencing 2020? Consider that an expensive lesson in what happens when you bet against the American people.
¹ Heather Moon, "Eric Trump Details Unexpected Run-In with Zuckerberg Following Years of Censorship," Media Research Center, November 7, 2025.
² Catherine Salgado, "Trump Says Zuckerberg Apologized After Post-Assassination Attempt Censorship—But Not Google," Media Research Center, August 2, 2024.
³ PBS News, "Zuckerberg says the White House pressured Facebook to 'censor' some COVID-19 content during the pandemic," PBS, August 27, 2024.
⁴ Fortune, "Trump says Mark Zuckerberg called to apologize about photo of assassination attempt and vowed not to endorse a Democrat," Fortune, August 3, 2024.
⁵ NPR, "Meta agrees to pay Trump $25 million to settle lawsuit over Facebook and Instagram suspensions," NPR, January 29, 2025.
