Facebook routinely suppressed conservative news
Even as Facebook claimed that its trending website, listing the stories that are supposedly the most popular, curators of that website have now admitted that they routinely suppressed conservative stories, just because they were conservative.
Facebook workers routinely suppressed news stories of interest to conservative readers from the social network’s influential “trending” news section, according to a former journalist who worked on the project. This individual says that workers prevented stories about the right-wing CPAC gathering, Mitt Romney, Rand Paul, and other conservative topics from appearing in the highly-influential section, even though they were organically trending among the site’s users.
Several former Facebook “news curators,” as they were known internally, also told Gizmodo that they were instructed to artificially “inject” selected stories into the trending news module, even if they weren’t popular enough to warrant inclusion—or in some cases weren’t trending at all. The former curators, all of whom worked as contractors, also said they were directed not to include news about Facebook itself in the trending module.
Facebook can do what it wants, but it is important to note the dishonesty here. They claimed their trending site objectively listed stories according to their popularity on Facebook, but when conservative news became popular, Facebook managers then stepped in make sure no one knew that. In other words, the organization lied to its members.
Note also that this is only further evidence that the last thing anyone should do is rely on one source for their information. Get it from multiple sources, with multiple perspectives, so that you increase the chances that you will get it all.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
Even as Facebook claimed that its trending website, listing the stories that are supposedly the most popular, curators of that website have now admitted that they routinely suppressed conservative stories, just because they were conservative.
Facebook workers routinely suppressed news stories of interest to conservative readers from the social network’s influential “trending” news section, according to a former journalist who worked on the project. This individual says that workers prevented stories about the right-wing CPAC gathering, Mitt Romney, Rand Paul, and other conservative topics from appearing in the highly-influential section, even though they were organically trending among the site’s users.
Several former Facebook “news curators,” as they were known internally, also told Gizmodo that they were instructed to artificially “inject” selected stories into the trending news module, even if they weren’t popular enough to warrant inclusion—or in some cases weren’t trending at all. The former curators, all of whom worked as contractors, also said they were directed not to include news about Facebook itself in the trending module.
Facebook can do what it wants, but it is important to note the dishonesty here. They claimed their trending site objectively listed stories according to their popularity on Facebook, but when conservative news became popular, Facebook managers then stepped in make sure no one knew that. In other words, the organization lied to its members.
Note also that this is only further evidence that the last thing anyone should do is rely on one source for their information. Get it from multiple sources, with multiple perspectives, so that you increase the chances that you will get it all.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
I am shocked—shocked—to find that suppression is going on in here!
There was a story recently about Twitter doing something simiar.
Frank:
Good one!
(I’m shocked as well!)
https://youtu.be/SjbPi00k_ME
[Edward–sarcasm alert!]
Everyone appears to run Linux here, how many folks have Facebook, Twitter, etc., accounts?
(I don’t, much to the displeasure of my G-Daughter.)
You might have noticed that I have neither Facebook nor Twitter. I don’t do Facebook mainly because it would only duplicate this webpage, and put me under the thumb of someone else. Twitter I avoid because it fundamentally offends me. The idea that intelligent discussion can happen confined to short little 140 character comments is absurd, and only contributes to the dumbing down of society.
Mr. Z.
Absolutely appreciate you don’t do the FB or Twitter thing!
I was sorta wondering aloud, how folks who really know computer’s, view social-media. Personally, it’s not my thing as far as entertainment/news/usefulness to me.
And I believe–from a technological/privacy standpoint, FB in particular–they track you to death. (big opponent of targeted-adverts & ‘customized search-results.’)
FB manipulating allegedly objective “trends” is just totally dishonest & nefarious. (Not a fan of Zuckerberg or his products.)
Fully agree Twitter contributes to a general dumbing down of society.
To clarify slightly ref Windows & Linux; I can manipulate/troubleshoot Windows pretty well. It wasn’t an option for me early on to learn otherwise, & then I got locked into the M-S world through work & simple laziness… & now shear momentum.
“Get it from multiple sources”
Amen.
And always read beyond the headline because so many headlines completely distort the message of the article (I always check Drudge, but his site is notorious for that as of course are liberal news linkers).
I like Facebook for keeping in touch with family and friends. I also participate in an inter-faith FB group.
But I assume everything I post is public (and being used to compile a profile) and don’t use Facebook newslinks to form my opinions.
Wikipedia does similar things to suppress views from a more conservative perspective.
Mark Zuckerberg is a tool of the deep state – a very wealthy one; that’s not paranoia, it’s clear as day.
I don’t do either Facebook, Twitter or any other social media platform – Reddit, Instagram, any of that crap. That’s the reason I don’t comment over at Spaceflight Now anymore. They switched to a Facebook-based comment engine and you have to have a Facebook account to post comments now.
I failed to mention one of the main reasons I avoid Facebook, as well as Google: Privacy. I find their prying into my emails and personal communications to be beyond offensive and downright immoral, and I won’t permit it. It is for this reason I got rid of gmail, and do almost no web searches using Google, using startpage.com instead.
In the name of diversity, tolerance, and freedom- we can not allow these stories and viewpoints to be heard.
Signed, facebook and “the media”.