Dana White joining Meta board could be Mark Zuckerberg's latest attempt at mending fences with Donald Trump after $1 million donation

Dana White has joined the board of directors of Mark Zuckerberg's Meta organization. It could potentially be Zuckerberg's latest move in mending fences with President-elect Donald Trump.

Prominent social media platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram are owned by U.S. tech billionaire Zuckerberg's Meta. In Dec. 2024, the Wall Street Journal reported that Zuckerberg donated $1 million to Trump's inaugural fund.

Per a Dec. 2024 USA Today report, Zuckerberg hadn't donated to the inaugural fund of the Republican Party's Trump when he won the presidential election in 2016 or to the Democratic Party's Joe Biden when he won in 2020.

Ex-P.O.T.U.S. and current President-elect Trump previously accused Zuckerberg of censoring the deemed right-wing and unfairly promoting the deemed left-wing via his platforms. Speaking to CNBC in 2024, Trump labeled Facebook "an enemy of the people." CNN later reported that Trump's remarks adversely affected Meta's stocks.

Akin to Zuckerberg, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos too reportedly planned to donate $1 million to Trump's inaugural fund. The consensus is that Zuckerberg and Bezos are following another tech billionaire, Trump administration member Elon Musk, by establishing ties with Trump. Zuckerberg also recently appointed Republican Joel Kaplan as its global policy chief.

Top-tier American tech entrepreneurs like Zuckerberg and Bezos are reportedly attempting to create goodwill with Trump before his second P.O.T.U.S. term commences this month, as his administration could majorly change social media regulations.

Earlier this month, UFC CEO Dana White, investor and ex-Microsoft exec Charlie Songhurst, and Italian industrialist John Elkann were announced by Meta as the three new additions to its board of directors. Zuckerberg, also a part of the 13-member board, stated:

"Charlie, Dana, and John will add a depth of expertise and perspective that will help us tackle the massive opportunities ahead with AI, wearables, and the future of human connection."

Veteran journalist Luke Thomas addressed it on X. Akin to several others in the combat sports and broader pop culture realms, Thomas suggested that having Dana White on its board of directors could prove useful for Mark Zuckerberg, as White has been a close friend and supporter of Trump for many years. Thomas wrote:

"I'm gonna guess that among other reasons, Dana White is on the board of directors for Meta as insurance. Trump admin is not going to antitrust prosecute or otherwise go after a company where White is on the board."

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Dana White on joining the Meta board of directors

Dana White extensively campaigned in favor of Donald Trump in multiple elections over the years -- speaking for Trump at multiple Republican National Conventions (RNCs) and partaking in a few other Trump-related political events.

Over the years, Zuckerberg went from praising veteran Democrats like Barack Obama to criticizing the outgoing P.O.T.U.S., Democratic leader Joe Biden. Zuckerberg has also bonded with White in recent years, trains in MMA and BJJ with notable UFC fighters, and attends UFC events.

As such, Zuckerberg's relationship with Dana White and efforts to ensure that there's no bad blood with Trump are believed to be interconnected. Furthermore, White expressed his elation about joining Meta's board, stating:

"I've never been interested in joining a board of directors until I got the offer to join Meta's board. I am a huge believer that social media and AI are the future."