Anti-social media Facebook’s intention to rank what it considers “trustworthiness” of news sources is the organization’s latest censorship scheme. It’s an unstated aim to censor truth-telling on vital issues, wanting content diverging from the official narrative restricted or blocked.
I’ve experienced the effects firsthand. Articles posted on my FB page were deleted. In 2016, I was banished from FB altogether for weeks – for refusing voluntarily to remove content it considered objectionable. I wrote about what happened at the time, accusing FB and other anti-social media of conspiring with dark forces in Washington to censor content diverging from the official narrative – flagrantly violating First Amendment rights.
What happened before can happen again – maybe permanent banishment for truth-telling journalism, what US dark forces want established, aiming to have fake news drown out what’s vital for everyone to know. Google transformed itself from a search engine to gatekeeper. Facebook increasingly operates the same way, its news feed ranking system the latest example. It wants untrustworthy establishment news sources promoted over reliable alternative ones. It intends conducting so-called user surveys to determine undefined “trustworthy” sources, rankings to follow.
Facebook is increasing its gatekeeper/thought control activities, using so-called “fact-checkers,” perhaps intending to eliminate independent content falsely designated “fake news.” I and others like me could be banished altogether. Some of my articles and FB friends were deleted, much more of the same likely coming.
Censoring content diverging from mainstream views constitutes a slippery slope toward undermining First Amendment rights altogether, a step toward greater totalitarian rule than already. Facebook considers what it calls “false narratives (content diverging from establishment views) intentionally divisive headlines and language that exploit disagreements and sow conflict” – a vague standard only censors could love, giving themselves latitude to do what they please extrajudicially.
Ranking information sources isn’t what media and speech freedom are all about. Censoring content is how tyrannical regimes operate. Facebook is an establishment organization serving privileged interests, increasingly hostile to what free societies cherish most.
STEPHEN LENDMAN was born in 1934 in Boston, MA. In 1956, he received a BA from Harvard University. Two years of US Army service followed, then an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania in 1960. After working seven years as a marketing research analyst, he joined the Lendman Group family business in 1967. He remained there until retiring at year end 1999. Writing on major world and national issues began in summer 2005. In early 2007, radio hosting followed. Lendman now hosts the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network three times weekly. Distinguished guests are featured. Listen live or archived. Major world and national issues are discussed. Lendman is a 2008 Project Censored winner and 2011 Mexican Journalists Club international journalism award recipient. His new site is at http://stephenlendman.org
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Not so much censorship from FB as it is an attempt by the FB staff to continue in a world where the US, government is putting immense pressure on all social media sites. To self censor based on the words and the tremendous hyperbol being put out there by the US, congress and senate.In order to survive,FB has deemed that the will of the US government and infrastructure that it cannot survive without.Is based on what acts of censorship said government sees as sufficient.By so doing,leaving the length and strength up to the providers.The government knows it’ll get far more… Read more »