Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg denied that his social media platform is a “right-wing echo chamber.”
During an interview with Axios, which aired on HBO Tuesday night, the 36-year-old billionaire acknowledged that partisan content can have a significant reach on the platform, but he rejected the notion that the traffic on Facebook is all from the Right. Zuckerberg said that he doesn’t find it to be a “bad thing” that right-wing users find content on the platform with which they can relate.
“Your characterization, frankly, is just wrong,” Zuckerberg told host Mike Allen. “I don’t think that the service is a ‘right-wing echo chamber,’ to use your words. I think that everyone can use their voice and can find media that they trust that reflects the opinions and the life experiences that they’re having. Some people, I think, have found before that their experiences weren’t being covered by traditional media and now are able to find voices and follow them that resonate more with their life experience.”
He added, “It’s not clear to me that that’s a bad thing. But look, I mean, the stories that get the most reach on a day-to-day basis are the same things that people talk about in the mainstream. They’re not highly partisan political issues. It’s just meaningful news that’s happening on a day-to-day basis.”
Many of the top posts on Facebook in a given week are from right-of-center sources. Zuckerberg said that some pages are more “sophisticated” at attracting users than others, and he credited their ability to be “authentic or natural” in attracting attention online.
Zuckerberg also denied that Facebook is filled with rage or that the website’s algorithm works by placing divisive content on users’ feeds.
“If you look at the country right now, there is a lot of people who are very exercised, and I think, frankly, for a lot of good reasons. And we have real issues. I think sometimes there is a fine line between a important level of high energy around an important issue and something that can kind of tilt over into causing harm,” he said.
