Gândul, one of Romania’s most-read independent online newspapers, has had its page on Facebook closed by Meta, receiving an explanation.
The page, which carried a verified status and had more than one million followers, was abruptly disabled on February 22 this year.
In a strongly worded editorial published yesterday, Gândul described the action as “an assault on the independent publication” and “a grave attack on press freedom and on the right of the Romanian public to be informed”.
Gândul was strongly critical of the annulment of the 2024 Romanian presidential elections.
The newspaper has consistently portrayed the decision by the Constitutional Court, which cancelled the entire electoral process after the first round (won by Călin Georgescu), as a deeply problematic and damaging act for Romanian democracy.
The newspaper, which holds a blue-check verification from Facebook, accuses Meta of pulverising years of journalistic work “with a single click” while operating in Romania without paying local taxes and engaging in unfair competition.According to Gândul’s own account, the shutdown occurred without prior warning and has resulted in an immediate and severe collapse in the publication’s reach.
In a single day, the newspaper lost an estimated 6 million to 7 million daily views and nearly 200 million monthly views across Facebook and its own website, dealing a significant blow to its audience and advertising revenue.
Gândul, which positions itself as Romania’s strongest opposition media outlet, reports that Meta has only referenced a vague copyright infringement claim in private correspondence, without identifying the specific content involved or providing a substantive opportunity for appeal.
Repeated attempts to restore the page through Facebook’s standard review process have so far proved unsuccessful. To date, Meta has issued no public statement on the matter.
There has been no comment from Meta’s communications team, no mention in its transparency or enforcement reports and no response to media inquiries seeking clarification.
This silence has fuelled accusations from Gândul that the action constitutes “an attack on the independent press” and a direct restriction on the Romanian public’s right to information.
Under the European Union’s Digital Services Act (DSA), Meta — as a Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) operating Facebook — has specific obligations when it restricts or removes content, accounts, or entire pages such as Gândul’s.
Platforms must also submit aggregated data on such decisions to the DSA Transparency Database.
A Romanian news channel that repeatedly questioned the cancellation of last year’s presidential election has had its broadcasting licence revoked.https://t.co/QGGBZcihpf
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) April 8, 2026
Gândul said it has formally called on Romanian authorities — including parliament, the government, the National Regulatory Authority for Communications and Information Technology of Romania (ANCOM), the Competition Council and the European Commission — to investigate what it terms an abuse of dominant position under national and EU law.
Separately, also in Romania, there is controversy surrounding President Nicușor Dan’s appointment of chief prosecutors.
Late yesterday, the President signed decrees naming Cristina Chiriac as Prosecutor General, Viorel Cerbu as head of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate (DNA) and several other senior figures.
He did this despite negative advisory opinions from the Superior Council of the Magistracy (CSM) and strong objections from civil-society groups and investigative journalists who had supported Dan’s election campaign.
Critics, including former justice minister Stelian Ion, argue the appointments risk weakening Romania’s anti-corruption drive; Chiriac in particular has faced accusations of having previously hidden evidence in a high-profile sexual-abuse case.
Dan has defended the choices as professionally justified and has rejected claims of political influence.
