Big Tech has a big bias problem.
Social media platforms that once facilitated the free exchange of ideas and information are now actively seeking to silence and censor conservative opinions.
This new Orwellian impulse that is taking over Big Tech is particularly problematic because social media websites, which are supposed to be safe spaces for all free speech, get special legal perks.
Under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, websites such as Facebook and Twitter are not treated as publishers of “information provided by another” — which would subject them to libel laws and other headaches publishers have to deal with — because they “offer a forum for a true diversity of political discourse.”
This means social media platforms are not merely private companies who can censor whomever they wish — They are considered, by law, to be public forums that allow free and open debate.
Yet, they’re doing the exact opposite. They are stifling online speech, warping the national discourse, and obstructing the free flow of ideas. Big Tech is not just biased against conservatives — it is actively trying to silence them and deprive them of online platforms.
Big Tech’s bias was on full display recently when conservative activist Candace Owens was suspended from Twitter for satirical tweets mimicking the racist, anti-white tweets of New York Times editorial board member Sarah Jeong — who has never been suspended from Twitter despite a history of racist comments.
The ban came just weeks after another controversy hit Twitter for anti-conservative bias, following revelations that the website had shadowbanned prominent Republican leaders.
Twitter isn’t the only major social media site with a demonstrated history of bias against conservatives. Facebook is infamous for its lopsided application of its “community standards.” Conservative content is regularly removed from the site while vile, often violent, radical left-wing content is left alone. Recently, a GOP congressional candidate’s ad was banned because it depicted images of the Cambodian genocide.
To make matters worse, the social media giant recently changed its feed algorithms — ostensibly to combat fake news — but the result has been a suspicious and significant drop in the reach of conservative pages and advertisements. A study found that while liberal publishers saw a roughly 2 percent increase in web traffic from Facebook following the algorithm changes, conservative ones saw a loss of traffic averaging around 14 percent.
Big Tech’s anti-conservative bias is positively institutional. Facebook, Google (YouTube), and Twitter all work with the Southern Poverty Law Center, a far-left organization with a proven track record of anti-conservative bias, to decide what is and isn’t “hate speech.”
Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like Big Tech is set to return to its free speech roots anytime soon. The Left clearly no longer values free speech at all.
Controversial commentator Alex Jones and his website Infowars were deplatformed last week from Facebook, YouTube, and other sites. The act was met with relish by liberals and Democrats. They were excited by the establishment of a precedent that will inevitably lead to the silencing of those with far less controversial opinions than Jones.
What we are seeing in Big Tech is the inherent totalitarian impulse of the Left come into full focus. The Left is losing at the ballot box, and there are some signs it is starting to lose the culture war too. The free and open Internet has been indispensable in spreading conservative ideas, and it was indispensable in getting Donald Trump elected president — and now the Left wishes to destroy it.
The giants of Silicon Valley must be challenged and reminded of what made the Internet so great in the first place. They must be stopped from turning the Internet into Big Brother.