Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, is drastically cutting the fees it pays to professional fact-checkers in India. Sources told The Hindu that payments for approved fact-check partners will be reduced by 33% to 50% over the next six months. Meta started working with professional fact-checkers in December 2016 to fight misinformation. These fact-checkers rely heavily on revenue from Meta to sustain their work. The payout cuts threaten smaller fact-checking organizations, which might need to lay off staff to survive. Meta has not responded to requests for comment on this matter. Globally, Meta ended fact-checking partnerships in the US after President Donald Trump's election. Since then, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Instagram and Facebook would switch to a system called "Community Notes," where users collaboratively add context to posts. Meta plans to expand Community Notes to more countries but has not confirmed if it will end fact-checker partnerships outside the US. A 2024 review by The Hindu on X’s Community Notes showed it struggles with polarization, often leaving false claims unmarked. The International Fact Checking Network warned Zuckerberg that ending professional fact-checking outside the US could cause real harm. They noted, "Research indicated [professionally applied] fact-check labels reduced belief in and sharing of false information." Despite these concerns, the program cuts could reshape how misinformation is handled in India and worldwide.