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Facebook won’t become objective venue, some users to have privileges, Russian senator says

Alexei Pushkov added that the entire company consists of contradictions and double standards

MOSCOW, October 26. /TASS/. Facebook will continue to increase its "liberal and pro-Western component" in global politics and won’t become an objective platform, Chairman of the Federation Council’s Commission on informational policy and interaction with the media Alexei Pushkov told TASS on Monday, commenting on information that a number of politicians received preferential treatment by this social network.

Earlier on Monday, the Financial Times, citing The Facebook Papers investigation based on the revelations by Frances Haugen, Facebook’s former employee, said that the corporation’s leadership granted privileges to a number of politicians when posting on this social network despite its own rules.

"As for ideological preferences, I am confident that Facebook will continue to work on increasing a liberal and pro-Western component in global politics. I cannot imagine that it can suddenly turn into some objective platform which would grant equal opportunities of expression to everyone," the senator explained.

"Facebook is operating in the system of American information instruments which is built on the support for certain principles, namely, the American domination, the support for a liberal approach in politics, the support for various minorities, from ethnic to sexual, the condemnation of all those who speak from the positions of traditional views. This, in my opinion, won’t change," he emphasized.

The senator added that the entire company "consists of contradictions and double standards." For this reason, he noted, he was not surprised by information that a number of politicians enjoyed preferential treatment when posting on this network.

According to the newspaper, the social network’s leadership was allowing celebrities and politicians to post whatever they wanted without any restrictions which was in violation of some of the network’s rules and directly interfered with Facebook’s content moderation process. This contradictory policy may have been dictated by the aspiration to create an illusion of impartiality against the background of former US President Donald Trump’s claims that Facebook promoted a liberal-democratic agenda while conservative politicians and journalists were not given an opportunity to voice their opinions. As a result, Facebook began to make exceptions for right-wing supporters.

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