Call for neutrality
Facebook faces more backlash for bias in news feed
With over a billion daily users and two billion monthly users, Facebook is now being used by over a quarter of the world’s population, giving it immense influence.
Not content to simply be a mode of personal communication, former Facebook workers revealed in 2016 that the site has stepped into the realm of guiding the national conversation as well.
The previous employees, known as news curators, said that widely shared conservative stories would not be added to the trending section.
Meanwhile, stories from liberal outlets were injected into the trending section, based on the deemed importance of the story rather than its popularity.
In the midst of the combatant political climate of today, this censorship was met with outrage, disgust and frustration throughout conservative circles.
It seems this anger was fueled by confusion over what the function and identity of Facebook is and should be.
This debate continues today as seen in the Aug. 2017 memo from conservative activist group American Commitment’s President, Phil Kerpen.
In the memo he urged lawmakers to pass regulations that would hold accountable platforms that present themselves as neutral while promoting a particular viewpoint.
If Facebook commits to being a media outlet, this would be a nonissue because every newsroom across America makes decisions every hour pertaining to which situations and events deserve coverage and attention.
However, if Facebook portrays itself as an unbiased means of sharing with friends and provides a list of trending stories as an added bonus, then people are right to expect to see what is actually being discussed the most.
It is easy to see, though, why Facebook chose to not leave the process to algorithms alone.
An uncomfortable article on Syrian refugees may not get shared much but is clearly more newsworthy than a Buzzfeed quiz about which Starbucks drink reflects your personality.
Widespread discussion must never be the lone metric for determining the importance of a story, as our culture has proven it cannot sustain a long-term conversation on unsettling but crucial topics.
On the other hand, there will always be disagreement as to which stories qualify as newsworthy and which do not.
Hence the catch-22 Facebook currently finds itself in.
Should they live by the algorithm and let necessary stories fall through the cracks? Or should they risk being accused of infringing on the freedom of speech but accept and embrace the responsibility of curating news?
If Facebook chooses the latter, which I think they should, they must dedicate themselves to forming a diverse staff that represents all healthy political views.
Actual hate groups and racists have no place at the table, but the rest of the spectrum must be represented and have an equal say.
True tolerance is not agreeing with everyone.
Instead, it is disagreeing with others but listening compassionately to them anyway.
How can Facebook expect civil discourse if they cannot even model it themselves?
While much of the burden to present a diversity of views falls on Facebook’s shoulders, there is a level of responsibility Americans, and especially Christians, must be willing to accept.
Christians who follow the example of Christ should be real life friends with people from all walks of life and opinions.
Jesus rarely spent time with religious leaders.
Instead, he was constantly interacting with and loving the outcasts and sinners, meaning we should desire to do the same.
Since people typically share content on Facebook that they approve of and believe is noteworthy, your feed will reflect your friends’ values.
Therefore, if we follow Jesus’ model of forming a wide-range of meaningful relationships with those that are different from us, our Facebook feeds should naturally provide us with stories from both sides of the spectrum.
When we are at the point when every view is being placed before us, it becomes crucial for Christians to know how to identify truth.
In the Bible, Paul tells Christians in Philippi that they must seek truth by stating that the church’s love, “may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment.”
If anyone should be able to spot lies and falsehoods, it should be Christians because we have been graciously given the Bible as the source of all truth and have the Holy Spirit speaking inside us.
Facebook must decide and proclaim its identity and role in ensuring truth is communicated.
At the same time, Christians must embrace their identity and role as the light of the world by shining the light of God’s truth into the confusing darkness the pervades our nation.
Price is an opinion writer.