Mark Zuckerberg defended meetings heās reportedly had with conservative leaders after #DeleteFacebook began trending on social media.
PoliticoĀ reportedĀ this week that the Facebook CEO held private meetings with, among others, Fox Newsā Tucker Carlson and conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt.
Conservatives have long accused Facebook of suppressing conservative political view and the company has tried to dispel that belief.
Zuckerberg says he meets with many people āacross the spectrum on lots of different issues.ā
āMeeting new people and hearing from a wide range of viewpoints is part of learning,ā Zuckerberg wrote in a Facebook post. āIf you havenāt tried it, I suggest you do!ā
Facebook has fought allegations since the lead-up to the 2016 presidential election that itās not doing enough to stop bogus accounts and political ads on its platform.
Those charges areĀ surfacing againĀ ahead of the 2020 election, with Democratic candidates Joe Biden and Sen. Elizabeth Warren demanding that Facebook remove Trump campaign ads that make false claims.
After Facebook refused to remove the ad saying that itās not a political gatekeeper, Warren paid for aĀ fake political adĀ that claimed Zuckerberg and Facebook have endorsed President Donald Trump.
The ad states in the next sentence that itās not true.
Pressure on the social media platform is escalating as the 2020 general election approaches.
Biden said that heād be open to breaking up Facebook. Sen. Kamala Harris of California has said sheās would consider new controls on the tech giant.
Facebook faces the risk of more accusations of political bias by blocking or suspending accounts, but also of creating a toxic online environment by doing nothing to remove bogus political ads and groups.
Research has revealed that millions of people get at least some political news on social platforms. A Pew Research Center survey found that a majority of American adults believe the news they see on such platforms are largely inaccurate.q
