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Facebook Reportedly Fired Oculus Founder over Anti-Hillary Political Views

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Oculus founder Palmer Luckey was fired from Facebook because of his political views, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal.

Luckey’s quick departure from the social media giant last year led to speculation over why the virtual reality pioneer left the company.

At the time, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that Luckey left because of a “personnel issue” and declined to give any specifics. He said that addressing the issue would be “inappropriate.”

However, Zuckerberg stressed that the departure was not because of political reasons.

But a new report by the Wall Street Journal claims that political reasons were exactly why Luckey was fired. The Journal reported that Luckey made a $10,000 donation to an anti-Hillary Clinton group in the midst of the 2016 presidential election.

Six months later, he was fired.

Sources told the Journal that Luckey was placed on leave and then fired because he supported Donald Trump in the election.

The report also said Luckey was forced by corporate executives to publicly support libertarian candidate Gary Johnson.

Luckey reportedly hired an employment lawyer who argued that he was wrongfully terminated because of political reasons, but ended up negotiating a $100 million payout from Facebook.

Do you believe this was a politically motivated firing?

A Facebook spokesperson would not comment on Luckey’s departure. “All details associated with specific personnel matters are kept strictly confidential,” the company said. “This is our policy for all employees, no matter their seniority.”

Despite not revealing details, the spokesperson doubled down on the company line that Luckey wasn’t fired for political reasons.

“But we can say unequivocally that Palmer’s departure was not due to his political views. We always made it clear that any mention of politics was up to Palmer and we did not pressure him to say something that wasn’t factual or true.”

The report comes amid speculation that top tech companies including Google, Twitter and Facebook have a left-leaning bias against conservatives.

In August, President Donald Trump said Google was “suppressing voices of conservatives and hiding information and news that is good.”

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Brian Amerige, a senior Facebook engineer, penned a memo in August saying that the culture in the company was a “political monoculture that’s intolerant of different views.”

He ended up leaving the company in October. “I care too deeply about our role in supporting free expression and intellectual diversity to even whole-heartedly attempt the product stuff anymore, and that’s how I know it’s time to go,” Amerige said.

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Steven is a former writer for The Western Journal and has written hundreds of stories for both Western Journal and Conservative Tribune. He is a follower of Jesus, husband to an amazing wife and father to two beautiful girls.
Steven is a former writer for the Western Journal and has written dozens of stories for both Western Journal and Conservative Tribune. Steven is a native of Louisiana but has transferred to a remote desert land often referred to as Arizona. He has a beautiful wife and two amazing daughters. You can often find him hiking the Arizona landscape or serving on the worship team at his church.
Birthplace
Shreveport, LA
Education
B.S. Church Ministries with a specialization in Church Planting and Revitalization
Location
Phoenix, AZ
Languages Spoken
English
Topics of Expertise
Politics, Culture, Faith




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