CDC Boarding | Facebook Content Moderation Console
In a series of revelations, documents obtained through litigation against the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have exposed a collaboration between Facebook and the federal agency to censor posts deemed as misinformation related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to the documents, Facebook created a custom portal exclusively for "authorized government agencies" to submit up to twenty links at a time for removal across its platforms. This new system, called the "Government Reporting System," dramatically increased the efficiency of the censorship machine.
The system allowed government actors to refer posts for removal based on several reasons, including "COVID Misinformation," "Vaccine Discouragement," and "COVID Vaccine Misinformation." CDC employees were given access to this portal and were trained on how to use it by Facebook employees in an onboarding presentation on May 19, 2021.
Rob Flaherty, a Facebook employee, is reported to have removed specific posts. If an individual was a "repeat offender" of the government's determinations on misinformation, their account's reach would be reduced or removed.
Facebook's Community Standards state that they only remove information deemed "false" by public health authorities. However, the documents reveal that the social media giant censored statements that made "false claims about masks" and discouraged "social distancing."
The documents also highlight the United Kingdom's role in shaping the Biden-Harris Administration's approach to online censorship. The new system made it harder for organizations like America First Legal (AFL) to provide oversight to individual censorship requests.
Gene Hamilton, America First Legal Executive Director, stated that the documents show the architecture behind the systems used to censor American free speech online. Hamilton claimed that the Biden Administration, in the name of a public health crisis, worked with major companies to silence dissent, violating the First Amendment.
It is important to note that the search results do not detail any collaboration between Facebook and the CDC for the purpose of censoring free speech. However, the documents obtained through litigation reveal the existence of a specially designed Facebook portal aimed at curbing Covid & Vaccine Misinformation.
The third step for the Facebook portal was called "Final landing page: transparency," where users received a confirmation message, a ticket or reference number, and access to the "Help Center." Each censorship request automatically generated a ticket.
The Constitution prohibits the government from censoring the American people, but Facebook and other social media companies made it easy for the Biden-Harris administration to "flag" posts for censoring. Access to the portal was only given to approved government and law enforcement personnel, and only "government-issued or law enforcement email addresses" were allowed to use this system.
These revelations have sparked controversy and raised questions about the extent to which tech companies and government agencies should collaborate in regulating online content, particularly during a public health crisis. The debate continues as more documents are made public and further investigations are conducted.
- The collaboration between Facebook and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to censor posts related to COVID-19 pandemic has been exposed in a series of documents obtained through litigation.
- The documents reveal that Facebook created a custom portal, the "Government Reporting System," for approved government and law enforcement personnel to submit content for removal, increasing the efficiency of the censorship machine.
- CDC employees were trained by Facebook employees to use the portal, and posts were removed based on reasons such as "COVID Misinformation," "Vaccine Discouragement," and "COVID Vaccine Misinformation."
- Independent journalism and advocacy groups have raised concerns about the suppression of free speech, with the Biden Administration and major companies working together to silence dissent, potentially violating the First Amendment.
- The debate continues as to the extent of collaboration between tech companies and government agencies in regulating online content, especially during a public health crisis, with the release of more documents and ongoing investigations.
- In light of these revelations, policy-and-legislation surrounding health, science, community, entertainment, general-news, and free speech on social-media platforms will likely be discussed and updated to ensure transparency and uphold the principles of truth and free speech.
