Facebook to stop promoting political groups
The Chief of Facebook Inc. Mark Zuckerberg said on Wednesday that no political themed group will be recommended by the social network to its users and this measure has been taken after the tensions in the US due to the elections. The image of the social media giant was tarnished by the political controversy which includes the rise of Donald Trump in the White House and it is now trying to shine up its image by this move.
In an earnest call Zuckerberg said, “We plan to keep civic and political group out of recommendations for the long term and we plan to expand the policy globally.” He further added that the social network Facebook would reduce political content in users’ main news feed as a part of a push “to turn down the temperature and discourage divisive conversation.”
This step taken by Facebook will help in guarding the platform from violent and misleading messages. Last week Facebook said that it is asking its independent experts to rule on whether the former president Donald Trump’s suspension for “fomenting insurrection” should stand.
Facebook is referring the decision to its independent oversight board which makes the final call on appeals regarding what should go and what should be restricted on the world’s biggest social network. The oversight board members include jurists, human right activists, journalists, a Nobel peace laureate and a former Danish prime minister that come from various countries.
After January 6 when the US Capitol was stormed by the supporters of Trump, Facebook and Instagram suspended the former president’s account. The decision to stop recommending and promoting politics related recommendations came from a user feedback said Zuckerberg and added that it will apply globally to the social network.
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