Facebook does not want users to even discuss censorship on its platform.
Former Republican South Carolina Senator and Chairman of Conservative Partnership Institute Jim DeMint found out about the problem the hard way. He was fact-checked by Facebook fact-checker HealthFeedback.org. In the original post, DeMint discussed Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton’s suspension from Twitter and shared a link to a study from Danish medical researchers about wearing masks. Facebook placed an interstitial, or filter, over the post that said, “False information Checked by independent fact-checkers.”
When the filter was clicked on, a pop-up said, “Independent fact-checkers say this information has no basis in fact.” It linked to an article from HealthFeedback.org, which argued: “Danish face mask study did not show that masks were ineffective at reducing spread of COVID-19; study was underpowered and results were inconclusive.” The article, written by science editor Flora Teoh, stated, “The lack of a statistically significant difference indicates that the results are likely due to chance alone, and that the intervention, in this case recommending the use of face masks, did not change the infection rate for the wearers.” Teoh has fact-checked many outlets, including the New York Post and
This particular fact-check called out many center-right publications, such as the Washington Examiner, The Federalist, and the Daily Mail. It also criticized major figures like Representative Anthony Sabatini (R-FL), radio host Buck Sexton, investigative journalist Sharyl Attkisson, Representative Andy Biggs (R-AZ), and former Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul.
DeMint said, “My friend, Judicial Watch’s Tom Fitton, was locked out of Twitter for daring to tell the scientific truth on masks: they don’t work at stopping COVID. He simply shared the news of the long anticipated Danish study of over 6,000 randomized people which came to the conclusion: ‘A recommendation to wear a surgical mask when outside the home among others did not reduce, at conventional levels of statistical significance, incident [COVID-19] infection compared with no mask recommendation.’”
He shared a screenshot from Fitton’s Parler post, which stated, “I've been locked out of Twitter for 12 hours for posting this accurate tweet.” DeMint later posted to Facebook, saying, “Facebook is now censoring my post that quotes from a scientific study and labeling it as false. Apparently it isn't science if it doesn't fit the liberal narrative. #FACTSoverFEAR #BigTechCensorship”
Healthfeedback.org was the same fact-checker that relied on two abortionists who worked for Planned Parenthood and NARAL to fact-check Live Action, a pro-life organization. Lila Rose, the founder of Live Action, was told by Facebook that its page outreach would be “limited,” after Health Feedback rated her statement, that “abortion is never medically necessary,” false. This fact-check was later investigated by the International Fact-Checking Network, a branch of the liberal Poynter Institute.
The International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) is a liberal fact-checking project started by the Poynter Institute and funded in part by liberal billionaire George Soros. Poynter Institute had also tried to get 29 conservative websites blacklisted by advertisers for publishing “UnNews.” Facebook had announced a partnership with independent third-party fact-checkers that were members of the IFCN, as well as the IFCN itself.
Conservatives are under attack. Contact Facebook headquarters at 1-650-308-7300 and demand that Big Tech be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency, clarity on “hate speech” and equal footing for conservatives. If you have been censored, contact us at the Media Research Center contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
