Facebook’s Zuckerberg defends leaving up ‘inflammatory’ Trump post about Minnesota protests

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, spoke Friday night after pressure from inside and outside his company to respond to a post from President Donald Trump seemed to be threatening that the National Guard would shoot what he called “thugs” protest the death of George Floyd, who died in police custody.

Shortly after protesters outraged at the death of Floyd, a black man in Minnesota, set fire to a police building there on ThursdayTrump said in social media posts on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram that “when the looting begins, the shootout begins.” The expression that was once used by racer Georgia Gov. George Wallaceis seen as consenting to police violence against demonstrators. Within a few hours, Twitter hid the post behind a warning that the tweet violated the site’s rules.Glorify violence.” The The warning includes an “Show” button Users can click to continue and read the tweet.

However, the posts were left alone on Facebook and in Facebook’s own photo sharing app Instagram, where more than 64,000 shares and more than 426,000 likes were collected. Zuckerberg went to his Facebook page late Friday to defend his decision He had discussed the matter with his team and decided to leave the posts.

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“I know that many people are upset that we have left the posts of the President open, but we believe that we should allow as much expression as possible unless there is an immediate risk of specific harm or danger that are set out in clear guidelines, “he wrote. “Although the post had a worrying historical reference, we decided to give it up because the National Guard’s evidence meant we read it as a warning about government action, and we believe people need to know if the government is planning to Use violence. “

He added that after Trump’s postings, the company would rethink its approach to this policy. “We contacted the White House today to explain these guidelines as well.”

Facebook did not respond to an interview request. The White House, which was reported to have been temporarily established Safety lock after protests broke out at his gates on Friday evening.

Zuckerberg’s comment comes at a time when large technology companies are under increasing pressure to deal with disinformation and misinformation, as well as to harass and threaten behavior. Twitter, which appears to have borne the brunt of criticism Trump can regularly violate his terms of use not allowing such behavior was pushed back against the president on Tuesday do a fact check at the end of a tweet about mail-in voting. The company moved again on Friday morning, hiding the tweet about looting and gunfire behind a warning that the post was glorifying violence. Twitter users not only have to click through the warning to read the tweet, they also cannot “like”, comment or retweet.

The movements angry Trump, who signed a regulation on Thursday calling on government agencies to look for ways to regulate or otherwise punish social media companies for their perceived prejudices and behavior. “This will be a great day for social media and FAIRNESS!” he tweeted before signing the order.

In the meantime, Facebook and his Instagram app have published Trump’s posts and angered employees in the company.

“All of this indicates a very high risk of violent escalation and civil unrest in November,” said one employee wrote on a corporate message board, according to a report by The Verge. “If we don’t pass the test case here, history won’t judge us kindly.”

Some analysts did not accept Zuckerberg’s position in defense of his company’s lack of action.

“This is such an excuse,” said Carolina Milanesi, an analyst at Creative Strategies. wrote on Twitter. “What discussion does Facebook actually enable by leaving the post open?”

Jeff Jarvis, media critic and professor at the City University of New York Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalismwas similarly critical of Zuckerberg’s post. “What does Facebook stand for? What are its community standards? Why does it exist? What is its North Star?” he tweeted.

“Facebook has again failed to address an explicit violation of its own rules and has allowed the violent and racist post to stay active,” he said Kristen Clarke, President and Executive Director of the Lawyers’ Committee on Civil Rights, in a statement. “While Twitter’s actions are long overdue, they set an important standard that can help build an online dialogue that reflects our national values ​​and the rule of law.”

For his part, Zuckerberg seemed to recognize that his post would not be well received.

“People may or may not agree where to draw the line, but I hope they understand our general philosophy that it is better to have this discussion openly, especially when the stakes are so high,” he wrote . “I don’t think the President spoke about it, but I think people should be able to see this for themselves, because ultimately, those in power can only be held accountable if their speech is openly examined.”