After Mark Zuckerberg’s admission that the FBI pressured Facebook into censoring the Hunter Biden laptop story, Meta seems to be in the midst of a reckoning.
NewsBusters reported in August that Meta’s CEO said to Joe Rogan that the FBI had forced Facebook to censor content prior the 2020 election. The company was fined almost $25 million this week for violating campaign finance disclosure laws.
Wednesday’s order was signed by Judge Douglass North of King County Superior Court. He had ruled in September that Meta had intentionally violated Washington’s Fair Campaign Practices Act more than 800 times since 2018.
Meta must make public the names and addresses for those who purchase political ads under the state’s transparency law.
This huge penalty was the maximum permitted for violations and is reportedly one of the largest campaign finance fines in American history.
Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson stated that the company deserved the maximum punishment for its “arrogance”.
Ferguson stated in a press release that “I have one word to describe Facebook’s conduct in the case — arrogance.” “It deliberately disregarded Washington’s electoral transparency laws. But that was not enough. Facebook argued that these laws should be declared invalid. That’s breathtaking. “Where is the corporate responsibility?”
Meta has been given one month to comply and pay the fine. Meta was also ordered by the judge to pay all costs and attorney’s fees.
Facebook has a history of censorship during elections in the United States. After Zuckerberg accused him, Facebook suspended Donald J. Trump in 2021.
Facebook announced last month that it would increase suppression for “election misinformation” during 2022’s election season. Facebook announced that it will have a dedicated team to combat voter interference and election misinformation during the 2022 midterms.
Conservatives are being attacked. Contact Facebook headquarters at (650-308-7300 to demand that Big Tech be held accountable to the First Amendment. Contact us via CensorTrack’s form if you feel your voice has been blocked. We will help you hold Big Tech responsible.
