WhatsApp ‘Channels’ Fall Under EU Content Law Hated by Trump

The WhatsApp application.Photographer: Thomas Trutschel/Getty Images

Information feeds on Meta Platforms Inc.’s WhatsApp messaging platform have become the latest Big Tech service to fall under European Union content-moderation rules likened to censorship by the Trump administration.

The European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, said Monday that it has designated WhatsApp’s open channels as a “Very Large Online Platform” under the Digital Services Act — meaning they must meet high standards for content moderation and transparency. Channels are open feeds affiliated with news organizations or public figures, and comparable to social media.