Jan 7 (Reuters) - Meta is ending its

fact-checking program in the U.S. and replacing it with a

"Community Notes" system similar to that on Elon Musk-owned X,

the Facebook parent said on Tuesday.

The Community Notes model will allow users on Meta's social

media sites Facebook, Instagram and Threads to call out posts

that are potentially misleading and need more context, rather

than placing the responsibility on independent fact checking

organizations and experts.

"Experts, like everyone else, have their own biases and

perspectives. This showed up in the choices some made about what

to fact check and how ... A program intended to inform too often

became a tool to censor," Meta said.

Meta added that its efforts over the years to manage content

across its platforms have expanded "to the point where we are

making too many mistakes, frustrating our users and too often

getting in the way of the free expression we set out to enable."

The company said it would begin phasing in Community Notes

in the United States over the next couple of months and would

improve the model over the course of the year.

It will also stop demoting fact-checked content and use a

label notifying users there is additional information related to

the post, instead of the company's current method of displaying

full-screen warnings that users have to click through before

even viewing the post.