Don't count net neutrality activist group Fight for the Future (FFTF) among those praising Facebook for taking down almost three dozen pages suspected of being "inauthentic," part of the social media platforms attempts to weed out fake news and posts from Russian election meddlers and others.
According to FFTF, one of the pages taken down was for a "perfectly legitimate" protest organized by activists in D.C. against a Unite the Right 2 rally sequel to the white nationalist event in Charlottesville.
Related: Sen. Warner: Facebook Deletions Show Ongoing Election-Meddling Threat
“Arbitrary mass censorship is not the solution for the challenges democracy faces in the digital age,” said FFTF deputy director Evan Greer. “Calls for more censorship, whether they come from the left or right, pose a dangerous threat to legitimate freedom of speech and undermine the power of the Internet as a tool for people to organize, educate themselves, and challenge tyranny and corruption," Greer said.
“Dragnet censorship operations, whether related to copyright or political content, always come with serious unintended consequences, where legitimate content is taken down," she added.Facebook has received plenty of plaudits for the takedown, including Wednesday at a hearing on social media effort to combat fake news and posts, where she praised the move and said other social media platforms must "continue" to fight fake news.
