Facebook Archives - National Legal & Policy Center

Trump & Biden Go to War Over Twitter’s Biased ‘Manipulation’ Labeling

Posted on March 13, 2020March 13, 2020 by Paul Chesser

With the first implementation of a new policy that purports to promote transparency in labeling videos that have been edited in ways that could be deceptive or misleading, Twitter couldn’t have succeeded better in making transparent its own liberal bias.

Last weekend the social media platform marked a video posted by White House social media director Dan Scavino, and retweeted by President Trump, as “manipulated media.” The label had never before been used, although Twitter warned that it was coming.

The video showed a clip of a speech by Democratic presidential frontrunner Joe Biden in his own stumbling words, which were cropped to make it appear he was endorsing Trump. The Democratic National Committee called attention to Twitter that the video was “manipulated,” according to The Daily Beast, and Twitter immediately slapped the label on it.

“This is an example of our ongoing disinformation work, … Read More ➡

Hypocritical CNN Overseer Blasts Facebook’s Lack of ‘Editorial Integrity’

Posted on March 10, 2020March 10, 2020 by Paul Chesser

The knock against Facebook that is getting the most attention right now is that CEO Mark Zuckerberg has said the platform will not act as arbiters of truth and falsehood for political candidates’ posts and ads.

Current and former political candidates like Hillary Clinton and Sen. Elizabeth Warren have argued that it is irresponsible for the company to not be watchdogs for truth. For his part, Zuckerberg has said essentially that Facebook users are fully capable (through comments) of policing truth vs. fiction and that free speech, not censorship, should be paramount.

As the left’s attacks on Facebook get more hysterical – thanks to President Donald Trump’s smashing success in using the platform – critics are emerging seemingly everywhere, calling for increased accountability through government regulation, because the social media company has “too much power.”

Besides the politicians, a top corporate executive has also spoken out against … Read More ➡

Left Turns Against Facebook; Demands Censorship of Trump

Posted on January 17, 2020January 17, 2020 by Paul Chesser

Donald Trump/PHOTO: Gage Skidmore via Creative Commons

If there was any doubt about why the political Left has suddenly turned against Facebook, it has become clear: It is because they think the social media behemoth is helping President Donald Trump.

Revelations last week by top executive Andrew Bosworth, a vice president who was in charge of advertising during the 2016 election season, won’t disabuse liberals of that. Bosworth, however, did not give Facebook credit for the Trump campaign’s success in 2016 – rather, he attributed it to where it belonged.

“He ran the single best digital ad campaign I’ve ever seen from any advertiser. Period,” Bosworth wrote in a private Facebook post that he later made public after the New York Times published a story about it.

“[Digital Director Brad] Parscale and Trump just did unbelievable work,” added Bosworth, a self-proclaimed liberal who is reportedly close to CEO … Read More ➡

Is Facebook’s Zuckerberg a Free-Speech Convert or Just Staving Off Regulation?

Posted on December 20, 2019December 20, 2019 by Paul Chesser

So has Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg suddenly become a free speech devotee?

If you observe how the political Left is reacting and obsessing over his decision last month to not police political advertisements, you’d think he might have.

His announcement was juxtaposed against the polar opposite move of social media rival Twitter, and its CEO Jack Dorsey, who in early November said his platform would completely ban political ads. The contrast between the two near-simultaneous declarations likely heightened the blowback against Facebook.

The policy means that Facebook won’t subject political ads placed by candidates or advocacy groups to the site’s fact-checking review, as it does with news articles. Nor will ads accused of being false be removed.

Specifically, Zuckerberg said, “In a democracy, I don’t think it’s right for public companies to censor policies or the news.” He downplayed the speculation that he was allowing the ads … Read More ➡

Facebook Embraces Free Speech for 2020, While Twitter Wants Censorship

Posted on November 7, 2019November 7, 2019 by Paul Chesser

Last week’s polar opposite decisions on the handling of political advertisements by Facebook and Twitter have predictably exposed the anti-free speech tendencies of the Left.

The former announced it would allow candidate and issue ads and exempt them from the platform’s fact-checking operation that it employs for news reports.

The latter said it would ban political advertisements altogether.

Advertisers crave access to Facebook’s users far more than Twitter’s, mostly because it is easy to specify target audiences (for example, those who “Like” Donald Trump). But both social media operations are desirable for politicians and activists to get their messages out, even for Republicans who complain about Facebook’s admitted anti-conservative bias, because they are an effective tool to reach desired voters.

The rationale given by Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey for his decision shows a mindset that helps explain why his business was not profitable until recently.

“We … Read More ➡

Facebook’s Zuckerberg Admits Bias Problem; Won’t Do Anything About It

Posted on September 24, 2019 by Paul Chesser

Facebook’s fact-checkers, like the legacy media’s predominant accountability sites like Politifact and FactCheck.org, are biased in favor of progressive causes.

And now even CEO Mark Zuckerberg has admitted it.

Four Republican Senators called out the social media powerhouse earlier this month over censorship of a pro-life group’s post and videos that claimed abortion is not medically necessary. The fact-check that led to restrictions to access of the posts was written b – you guessed it – abortionists.

The “offending” posts were separate videos published on Facebook by Live Action: one featuring the group’s president, Lila Rose, and the other featured by neonatologist Dr. Kendra Kolb. The women claimed in each video that abortion is “never medically necessary.”

To fact-check the claims, Facebook enlisted Robin Schickler, an OB-GYN and fellow at the pro-abortion Physicians for Reproductive Health, and Daniel Grossman, director of Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health … Read More ➡

Some Big Tech Companies Don’t Join Call for Gun Control

Posted on September 17, 2019 by Paul Chesser

Corporate activism for progressive causes has become so common, that it is now news when social justice warrior CEOs don’t sign joint letters that demand government to address their latest outrage.

That’s the case following the recent mass shootings in the Texas cities of El Paso and Odessa, and in Dayton, Ohio. As part of the usual outcry for more gun control legislation after such incidents, several companies co-signed an open letter addressed to U.S. Senators asking them to address the “public health crisis that demands urgent action.”

The major technology companies of left-leaning Silicon Valley regularly participate in such initiatives, and some smaller ones did join this effort, including the top executives at Airbnb, Lyft, Reddit, Twitter, Uber and Yelp.

“There are steps Congress can, and must, take to prevent and reduce gun violence,” the letter stated. “We need our lawmakers to support common-sense gun laws that … Read More ➡

Corporate America Gets Behind Deceptively Named ‘Equality Act’

Posted on June 4, 2019 by Paul Chesser

Much of corporate America is once again banding together to attack the social construct of the nation and many of its liberties, all in the name of conferring special rights and privileges upon individuals who don’t accept or acknowledge the gender they were born with.

The occasion this time was to get behind the “Equality Act,” which the Democrat-controlled U.S. House recently passed. The misnamed legislation purports to enact law that prohibits “anti-Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgender/Queer (LGBTQ) discrimination,” but in practice would put the kibosh on almost all other rights and freedoms Americans possess –including speech, association, privacy, and property rights. Most of what the law would do is bastardize the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by adding “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” to “race, color, religion, sex, or national origin” discrimination protections.

The “Equality Act” would produce draconian outcomes, including (list compiled by staff of Rep. Vicki … Read More ➡

Facebook Criticized for Lack of Ideological Diversity at Annual Meeting

Posted on May 30, 2019May 31, 2019 by NLPC Staff

Here are remarks of NLPC Chairman Peter Flaherty at the Facebook annual meeting today in Menlo Park, California in support of NLPC shareholder proposal on workplace diversity:

In response to this proposal promoting ideological diversity, the Company claims that “diversity of ideas is core to our business,” but then goes on cite initiatives that make the company less diverse, not more.

Like the fact that the company publishes data on the ethnicity and gender of the its workforce. Is it not racist and sexist to attribute certain thoughts and ideas to individuals based on their gender or race? Do all African-Americans think alike? How about all women?

Facebook huffs that “we do not collect data on the political ideology of our employees,” as if this would be somehow intrusive.

I’d suggest that it is a lot less intrusive than quizzing employees on the genetic makeup of … Read More ➡

Facebook Opposes Shareholder Proposal on Ideological Diversity

Posted on May 28, 2019May 31, 2019 by Peter Flaherty

In another indication that the company is biased against conservatives and libertarians, Facebook opposes a shareholder proposal that promotes ideological and political diversity in its workforce. Sponsored by the National Legal and Policy Center (NLPC), the resolution will be considered at the Facebook annual meeting on Thursday, May 30 in Menlo Park, California.

Facebook’s opposing statement doesn’t directly address the issue raised by the resolution and instead describes programs that make the workforce even more Left-wing and are based on group identity. According to NLPC Chairman Peter Flaherty, who will present the resolution, “Once again, Zuckerberg is giving the back of his hand to legitimate concerns about the bias problem at Facebook.”

NLPC’s resolution and supporting statement is below. Facebook’s statement of opposition appears on page 69 of the proxy, which can be viewed here.

WORKFORCE DIVERSITY

WHEREAS:

In 2016, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote, … Read More ➡