Banning of the Alt Right

Image result for alex jones

Recent questions have risen regarding the freedom of speech, as well as company accountability thanks to Facebook's banning of seven accounts, all of which are mostly right wing. Facebook has recently been under fire for allowing misinformation and hateful content to be given platform on their site. This situation is delicate - with so much power in the hands of social media companies, to what extent should they be held accountable for the spread of fake news, or hate speech?

Facebook banned these accounts under its policies that don't allow "dangerous organizations or individuals." Of all the accountants banned, 6 were people and one was an organization. They are: Louis Farrakhan, the leader of the Nation of Islam, who has been called anti-Semitic and homophobic. Laura Loomer, an internet personality, politcal activist and far-right conspiracy theorist.
Paul Nehlen, self described "pro-White Christian," and according to Washington Post, was banned from Breitbart News in 2018 for "for ties to neo-Nazis and racist comments about Meghan Markle."
Milo Yiannopoulos, an alt-right media personality. Infowars, a far-right conspiracy news website, writing articles claiming that the Sandy Hook elementary school shooting was a "false flag operation" by gun control activists, among other things. Alex Jones, a far-right conspiracy theorist who established Infowars. Paul Joseph Watson, who works for Infowars, and The Post described him a "far-right Youtube pesonality."

What responsiblity does Facebook have to stop hate and fake news from spreading? Is it ok for Facebook to decide who gets to speak and who doesn't?

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

I don't watch TV

Violence in the Media

Killing Facebook