The writing is on the wall, and Mark Zuckerberg has finally noticed.
Facebook’s litany of failures finally generated enough heat to push Zuckerberg to publish a call for regulation of his company and the social media space in general. I’ve long called for better oversight and accountability for these social media giants and the role they play in our public life, but Zuck’s suggestions ring hollow; like the words of a man whose hand has been caught in the cookie jar, arguing for more sustainable distribution of the cookies he’s already stolen. It’s time to treat these companies not as the plucky startups they pretend to be, but as the corporate behemoths they’ve become.
Zuckerberg argues—unconvincingly—that “we” need additional regulations on speech, more restrictions on how Americans are able to influence their own elections, data regulatory schemes, and “data portability.” There are more than a few problems with this.
First, our representatives have abdicated their role in representing the people, particularly when it comes to their duty to protect and defend our First Amendment rights. Because of that, these tech companies have filled the void and elected themselves the arbiters of “hate speech.” Memo to those reading: corporations run by and filled with leftists are bound to have a different definition of “free speech” than you or I do.