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Weird that an outspoken free speech advocate like Mark Zuckerberg would want to limit the speech of his employees.

kurthr 6y ago
Especially since they presumably use FB for internal discussions... Why not use the same (weak) moderation mechanisms everyone else has? Not like you can avoid politics on your regular feed. I guess he realizes they don't work.
- JamesBarney 6y ago
  It seems far easier to police the 50,000 people you write checks to, than a billion users.
- fatnoah 6y ago
  AFAIK, Facebook is not used for internal discussions. Unlike the Facebook we all have, there are no controls to block users, flag posts as "see fewer like this", etc. I've used those to great effect and see zero political content on my FB feed.
- bhupy 6y ago
  > Why not use the same (weak) moderation mechanisms everyone else has? Not like you can avoid politics on your regular feed. Because people don't typically use Facebook at work? It's a recreational tool. The issue is that for Facebook employees, they are working on building that recreational tool, and that hampers productivity and professionalism. > I guess he realizes they don't work. Or he realizes that they work for a service that's typically consumed during one's free time, and not as a direct component of one's employment.
ugh123 6y ago
I think the point is that employees that are taking advantage of free speech within the workplace are forcing others into the debate unwillingly, and this is causing strife and resentment. I applaud the move.
- sg47 6y ago
  Just like miscreants are taking advantage of free speech by spreading misinformation and conspiracy theories on FB the platform?
  - themacguffinman 6y ago
    Forcing others into debate and spreading conspiracy theories are two different matters. The former impinges on the basic freedom of speech and association for other people, while the latter affects no one's freedoms. The former is a matter of principle, the latter is a subjective judgement.
    - sg47 6y ago
      Where's the proof that others are being forced into debate?
      - themacguffinman 6y ago
        Unsure what the GP was referring to, but the article suggests that the pressure comes from activists spamming work feeds: > “What we’ve heard from our employees is that they want the option to join debates on social and political issues, rather than see them unexpectedly in their work feed.” [said Facebook spokesman Joe Osborne] Others have organized to skip work in an act of defiance, affecting colleagues who are not engaged in their political cause: > a group of employees staged a virtual walkout in early June to protest Facebook’s decision to leave up a post from President Trump about social unrest Not exactly a "gun to your head" type of forced, but nonetheless these are actions designed to foment a political clash with other employees to engage with certain political causes when they may not want to concern themselves with that at all. What makes this particularly problematic in the workplace is that many employees rely on work feeds and teamwork to earn a livelihood for themselves and their families, so they cannot realistically avoid it.
        kelnos 6y ago
mhoad 6y ago
I just got done reading this[1] and it's becoming harder and harder believe the idea that Facebook is just pro "free speech". Their actions aren't meeting their words at all. [1]https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2020-09-17/facebook-and-mark-zuckerberg-need-trump-even-more-than-trump-needs-facebook https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2020-09-17/facebook-...
compiler-guy 6y ago
All but the most strident and radical free-speechers support time, place, and manner restrictions.

Especially since they presumably use FB for internal discussions... Why not use the same (weak) moderation mechanisms everyone else has? Not like you can avoid politics on your regular feed. I guess he realizes they don't work.

JamesBarney 6y ago
It seems far easier to police the 50,000 people you write checks to, than a billion users.
fatnoah 6y ago
AFAIK, Facebook is not used for internal discussions. Unlike the Facebook we all have, there are no controls to block users, flag posts as "see fewer like this", etc. I've used those to great effect and see zero political content on my FB feed.
bhupy 6y ago
> Why not use the same (weak) moderation mechanisms everyone else has? Not like you can avoid politics on your regular feed. Because people don't typically use Facebook at work? It's a recreational tool. The issue is that for Facebook employees, they are working on building that recreational tool, and that hampers productivity and professionalism. > I guess he realizes they don't work. Or he realizes that they work for a service that's typically consumed during one's free time, and not as a direct component of one's employment.

ugh123 6y ago

I think the point is that employees that are taking advantage of free speech within the workplace are forcing others into the debate unwillingly, and this is causing strife and resentment. I applaud the move.

sg47 6y ago
Just like miscreants are taking advantage of free speech by spreading misinformation and conspiracy theories on FB the platform?
- themacguffinman 6y ago
  Forcing others into debate and spreading conspiracy theories are two different matters. The former impinges on the basic freedom of speech and association for other people, while the latter affects no one's freedoms. The former is a matter of principle, the latter is a subjective judgement.
  - sg47 6y ago
    Where's the proof that others are being forced into debate?
    - themacguffinman 6y ago
      Unsure what the GP was referring to, but the article suggests that the pressure comes from activists spamming work feeds: > “What we’ve heard from our employees is that they want the option to join debates on social and political issues, rather than see them unexpectedly in their work feed.” [said Facebook spokesman Joe Osborne] Others have organized to skip work in an act of defiance, affecting colleagues who are not engaged in their political cause: > a group of employees staged a virtual walkout in early June to protest Facebook’s decision to leave up a post from President Trump about social unrest Not exactly a "gun to your head" type of forced, but nonetheless these are actions designed to foment a political clash with other employees to engage with certain political causes when they may not want to concern themselves with that at all. What makes this particularly problematic in the workplace is that many employees rely on work feeds and teamwork to earn a livelihood for themselves and their families, so they cannot realistically avoid it.
      - kelnos 6y ago

mhoad 6y ago

I just got done reading this[1] and it's becoming harder and harder believe the idea that Facebook is just pro "free speech". Their actions aren't meeting their words at all. [1]https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2020-09-17/facebook-and-mark-zuckerberg-need-trump-even-more-than-trump-needs-facebook https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2020-09-17/facebook-...

compiler-guy 6y ago

All but the most strident and radical free-speechers support time, place, and manner restrictions.