A new study by the Media Research Center (MRC) found 39 cases of Facebook interfering in American elections since 2008. This has sparked worries about the platform’s impact on democracy.
A new study from MRC Free Speech America reveals that Facebook has interfeared in American elections a staggering 39 times since 2008. This interference started back in 2012, hit its highest point in 2020, and seems to be tapering off as the 2024 election season ramps up.
Mark Zuckerberg has voiced support for free speech on multiple occasions, notably during his well-known 2019 address at Georgetown University.
“We can either continue to stand for free expression understanding its messiness but believing that the long journey towards greater progress requires confronting ideas that challenge us. Or we can decide that the cost is simply too great.” he asserted in that speech.
Additionally, he has criticized politically-driven censorship as “dangerous” and emphasized that Facebook and similar platforms should not assume the role of the “arbiter of truth.”
Nevertheless, Facebook’s conduct has frequently clashed with these declarations.
In 2012, the platform suspended a Veteran PAC for sharing a meme spotlighting the Benghazi attack. In 2016, Facebook censored then-Democratic Party candidate Bernie Sanders as well as “conservative topics” and news.
The censorship intensified in 2018, as Facebook took down ads for numerous congressional and state legislative candidates.
The 2020 election witnessed a surge in Facebook censorship, as the platform suppressed posts and advertisements from then-President Donald Trump on at least four occasions and removed seven political ads funded by conservative groups.
The most significant event was the censorship of the New York Post’s explosive Hunter Biden story, followed by the indefinite suspension of President Trump’s accounts in early 2021.
Throughout 2022, Facebook persisted in censoring numerous gubernatorial candidates and candidates for the U.S. Congress, among them Representative Rich McCormick (R-GA), Virginia GOP congressional candidate Jarome Bell, and Missouri GOP U.S. Senate candidate Eric Greitens.
Based on the latest updates, Meta, led by Mark Zuckerberg, has planned a strategy where you may not come across posts from Donald Trump, whose activity on Facebook has decreased by 60 percent.
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