When talking with people who work in the conservative social media world, one will likely hear complaints about Facebook’s newest algorithm adjustment making it more difficult for their content to reach people. A new revelation may provide some answers.
At Gizmodo, Michael Nunez reports that Facebook, the world’s largest social network, suppressed trending conservative stories, and prevented them from displaying in its “trending” sidebar.
Nunez spoke with numerous former Facebook “news curators,” or employees responsible for determining what showed in the “trending” news section on Facebook.
Nunez explains the trending news section functions like a newsroom, “reflecting the biases of its workers and the institutional imperatives of the corporation.”
He adds that there isn’t anything necessarily bad about the practice, “but it is in stark contrast to the company’s claims that the trending module simply lists ‘topics that have recently become popular on Facebook.'”
One curator said, “Depending on who was on shift, things would be blacklisted or trending.”
He kept a log of trending stories omitted from the trending section, including, “former IRS official Lois Lerner, who was accused by Republicans of inappropriately scrutinizing conservative groups; Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker; popular conservative news aggregator the Drudge Report; Chris Kyle, the former Navy SEAL who was murdered in 2013; and former Fox News contributor Steven Crowder.” He said, “I believe it had a chilling effect on conservative news.”
Another curator said it was “absolutely bias” that determined what was promoted.
Managers also instructed them to insert stories that were not trending into the trending news section, including stories about Black Lives Matter.
However, as Nunez notes, this aspect may reflect Facebook’s concern for its future.
Facebook has yet to address the reports.
