Facebook doesn’t have to worry about any new regulations from the federal government, a top Republican made clear Monday, despite accusations that the social media giant has discriminated against conservative news items.
“While the committee remains open to new information on this matter, transparency – not regulation – remains the goal, so I thank the company for its efforts to acknowledge relevant facts and its recognition of a continuing need to transparently address relevant user questions,” Senate Commerce Committee chairman John Thune, R-S.D., said Monday evening.
Thune inquired about Facebook’s “Trending Topics” after tech website Gizmodo reported a whistleblower’s claim that company employees suppressed right-leaning news outlets and stories. His letter provoked some criticism from conservatives, who regarded it as beyond the scope of government authority. Thune seemed sensitive to those critiques, though he emphasized that investigators spurred Facebook to produce new information about their policies.
“Private companies are fully entitled to espouse their own views, so I appreciate Facebook’s efforts to address allegations of bias raised in the media and my concern about a lack of transparency in its methodology for determining trending topics,” he said.
Facebook defended its practices, but allowed that some employees might have acted inappropriately. “We were unable to substantiate any of the specific allegations of politically-motivated suppression of subjects or sources,” Facebook general counsel Colin Stretch wrote to Thune. “The investigation did reveal that — prior to July 2015 — reviewers followed guidance that did not permit the acceptance of a topic if one of the first 12 posts (the “feed”) associated with that topic did not include a post from a news organization, a primary source, or a verified profile or page. This guidance may have in some instances prior to that date prevented or delayed acceptance of topics that were not covered by major news organizations.”
That didn’t satisfy some of the conservatives reported to have been deprived of exposure in the Trending Topics section. “Sen. Thune has done the right thing to press them and we urge Congress to vigorously scrutinize Facebook to prevent deceptive practices and false advertising in the future,” said American Conservative Union president Matt Schlapp, whose organization hosts the annual conservative conference, CPAC.
Thune seems inclined to let Facebook reform itself. “The seriousness with which Facebook has treated these allegations and its desire to serve as an open platform for all viewpoints is evident and encouraging and I look forward to the company’s actions meeting its public rhetoric,” he said.
