Facebook doesn't care. You know this.
After all, why should anyone be surprised by that recent report alluding to the potential of Facebook supporting Chinese censorship of their News Feed? They want to make inroads into China, where the service is currently banned. China is a huge potential market for them. The social network is a machine, and human users are its grist.
We're there to create data that increases the platform's value. And the nature of that data—whether it's pictures of an infant, or a fake news post influencing someone's vote—is secondary.
Even as Facebook figures out how to calm Americans who fear the spread of propaganda on its platform, on Tuesday, we learned about their apparent calculations as to how it might censor Chinese users, in order to appease their government.
"The social network has quietly developed software to suppress posts from appearing in people’s news feeds in specific geographic areas, according to three current and former Facebook employees, who asked for anonymity because the tool is confidential," Mike Isaac of the New York Times reported.
Facebook didn't deny any details of the report in a statement to Mashable.
For those keeping score, you'll note: Facebook allows a wide mass of its users the freedom to spread fake news (which they won't regulate), while simultaneously working to prevent another group from sharing actual news.
Needless to say, that set off a few alarm bells.
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