Mending fences
Facebook confab with conservatives proves constructive,
Big names in conservative media and political circles say they came away from a meeting with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg convinced the giant social network wants to repair its relationship with the right after damaging allegations it steers people away from conservative viewpoints.
“I know many conservatives don’t trust that our platform surfaces content without a political bias. I wanted to hear their concerns personally and have an open conversation about how we can build trust,” Zuckerberg said in a Facebook post following the meeting held at the company’s Menlo Park, Calif., headquarters.
The perspective in the conservative establishment: Silicon Valley exists in a liberal bubble and that world view has unintentionally seeped into the Facebook platform. Those who attended the meeting say they believe Facebook is serious about addressing the problem.
“From the very top there is a genuine desire to resolve it,” Brent Bozell, president of conservative media watchdog the Media Research Center, said in a statement. “There were good exchanges and overall it was cordial. We’ll see how the investigation turns out. There has been a serious issue of trust within the conservative movement about this issue, but everyone in that room, on both sides, wants to see it restored.”
Kristen Soltis Anderson, the Republican pollster, television personality and writer, told CNN it was a “civil but frank” discussion. “Most assumed Facebook is not operating in bad faith but wanted to raise the issue on unconscious bias where it can crop
“There has been a serious issue of trust within the conservative movement about this issue, but everyone in that room ... wants to see it restored.” Brent Bozell, president of conservative media watchdog the Media Research Center
up,” she said. “Because Silicon Valley is largely left of center, the folks in the room wanted to convey that it’s important to make sure there’s a culture of respecting viewpoints of all types and preserving Facebook as a free marketplace of ideas.”
Not all conservatives were eager to engage with Facebook. American Conservative Union chairman Matt Schlapp told Fox News he refused the invitation and dismissed the meeting as a publicity stunt. He says Facebook should be transparent about whether conservative viewpoints were suppressed in the “Trending Topics” feature.
“They are not promising transparency,” Schlapp said. “I want to see exactly how they treat conservatives and treat everyone.”
In an email, Facebook said executives received direct feedback on “Trending Topics” feature, the source of last week’s controversy.
Gizmodo reported that Facebook’s news curators suppress conservative articles and news outlets in the feature that highlights the most popular news on Facebook. Facebook has repeatedly denied the allegation, but its image has taken a hit with Republicans.
Republicans’ perceptions of Facebook have declined 68% since the story broke, Recode reported, citing YouGov. And that has put growing pressure on Facebook to repair the damage.