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After Being Questioned on Diamond and Silk, Zuckerberg Promises to Overturn 'Unsafe' Label

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Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg testified before Congress on Wednesday that the supression of Lynnette “Diamond” Hardaway and Rochelle “Silk” Richardson on his platform was an “enforcement error.”

GOP Congressman Joe Barton of Texas pressed Zuckerberg during the Facebook head’s appearance before the House Commerce Committee.

Zuckerberg promised the decision would be reversed.

Hardaway and Richardson said they received an email from Facebook last week, which read in part, “The Policy team has came to the conclusion that your content and your brand has been determined unsafe to the community,” adding, “This decision is final and it is not appeal-able in any way.”

A Facebook spokesperson confirmed the decision to Fox News earlier this week, saying the content created by the pro-Donald Trump duo had been deemed “unsafe.”

Hardaway responded to Facebook’s decision Tuesday night on FNC’s “The Ingraham Angle,” stating, “When you say that you deem us ‘unsafe to the community,’ what you’re saying is that we are a danger to our community.”

She continued, “It’s offensive, it’s appalling, I look at this as discrimination. … This is censorship. You are censoring our voices.”

The Facebook spokesperson told Fox the company had decided to reverse its decision.

Do you think Facebook discriminates against conservative viewpoints?

“We have communicated directly with Diamond and Silk about this issue,” a statement from Facebook read. “The message they received last week was inaccurate and not reflective of the way we communicate with our community and the people who run Pages on our platform.”

But Hardaway told Fox no one had reached out to them regarding Facebook’s reversal.

The conservative commentators further addressed the issue Wednesday on “Fox & Friends” with a clear message: “We are not unsafe!”

“We are not unsafe. We are not animals. We are two black chicks that’s down with politics, that’s patriotic, that loves our country, that loves our president and that loves his agenda,” said Hardway.

Related:
Adam Schiff Called Out for Trying to Bully Tech Companies Into Censoring Americans Ahead of Election

“If (Zuckerberg) was concerned about his platform being a place for all ideas, then why would he put algorithms in place to censor some ideas?” she added. “And why is he turning Facebook into a political playground for Democrats?”

Texas Sen. Ted Cruz questioned Zuckerberg on Tuesday about reports of his platform’s political bias against conservatives, citing the removal of Diamond and Silk among other examples.

“This is actually a concern that I have, and that I try to root out at the company — is making sure that we don’t have any bias in the work that we do,” Zuckerberg responded. “I think it is a fair concern that people would at least wonder about.”

As reported by The Western Journal, Facebook’s recent “trusted sources” algorithm change implemented in February resulted in conservative sites seeing double-digit decreases in traffic, while liberal sites (apparently judged trustworthy) have seen traffic stay the same or increase.

Facebook Algorithm Impact On Conservatives

The original study by The Western Journal, reported on widely by other outlets, documented the change in reach to various news outlets based on their ideological bent, following Facebook’s February algorithm change.

The findings were unequivocal: Liberal publishers saw a 2 percent increase in traffic, while the most popular conservative sites averaged a 14 percent decrease.

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Randy DeSoto has written more than 3,000 articles for The Western Journal since he began with the company in 2015. He is a graduate of West Point and Regent University School of Law. He is the author of the book "We Hold These Truths" and screenwriter of the political documentary "I Want Your Money."
Randy DeSoto wrote and was the assistant producer of the documentary film "I Want Your Money" about the perils of Big Government, comparing the presidencies of Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama. Randy is the author of the book "We Hold These Truths," which addresses how leaders have appealed to beliefs found in the Declaration of Independence at defining moments in our nation's history. He has been published in several political sites and newspapers.

Randy graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point with a BS in political science and Regent University School of Law with a juris doctorate.
Birthplace
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Nationality
American
Honors/Awards
Graduated dean's list from West Point
Education
United States Military Academy at West Point, Regent University School of Law
Books Written
We Hold These Truths
Professional Memberships
Virginia and Pennsylvania state bars
Location
Phoenix, Arizona
Languages Spoken
English
Topics of Expertise
Politics, Entertainment, Faith




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