Mark Zuckerberg has reportedly invited several conservative pundits to Facebook’s headquarters to discuss the social network’s “Trending Topics” feature.
On Sunday, conservative commentator Glenn Beck said he and several others were invited to Silicon Valley to discuss allegations that the website censored conservative content and discuss how Facebook can prevent censorship from happening.
“Mark wanted to meet with eight or 10 of us to explain what happened and assure us that it won’t happen again,” Beck wrote in a Facebook post.
“How does a company who allowed voices to be heard in Iran and Egypt which sparked revolution silence voices of anyone here? I am trying to rearrange my schedule to see if I can make it. It would be interesting to look him in the eye as he explains and a win for all voices if we can come to a place of real trust with this powerful tool.”
READ MORE: Facebook denies censoring conservative content
The reported meeting stems from a report published last week by Gawker’s Gizmodo blog, which alleged that contractors who worked on Facebook’s trending topics section had purposely blocked conservative media outlets from appearing in the sidebar, which is seen by users all over the world. According to the report, the contractors blocked stories about “the right-wing CPAC gathering, Mitt Romney, Rand Paul, and other conservative topics.”
Facebook has denied the reports, stating it has found “no evidence” to support the allegations. The company has since pulled back the curtain on how its Trending Topics feature works, posting a 28-page internal document Facebook uses to determine trending topics.
- Ontario First Nation calls for chemical plant to be shut down amid ‘dangerously high’ benzene levels
- Nova Scotia scraps spring bear hunt idea, public ‘very divided’ on issue
- Ottawa looks to launch national flood insurance program within 12 months
- Alberta, coal lobbyists talked for years about more open-pit mining in the Rockies: documents
READ MORE: Facebook pulls back the curtain on how ‘Trending Topics’ works
In his Facebook post, Beck said he hopes Zuckerberg will be open to discussing free speech on the social network.
“While they are a private business and I support their right to run it any way they desire without government interference, it would be wonderful if a tool like Facebook independently chose to hold up freedom of speech and freedom of association as a corporate principle,” said Beck.
“It doesn’t count if they are doing it because of boycotts or pressure groups. In fact, if he had the balls to tell me that he was courting me due to pressure groups I would disagree with his business plan but join him in the fight to make his own decisions with his company against the pressure groups.”
— With files from The Associated Press
Comments