Washington, DC – Today, Congressman Jerry McNerney (CA-09), and 26 members of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, including Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr., sent a letter to Facebook’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg regarding the doctored video of Speaker Pelosi that was posted on Facebook’s platform last month. The letter raises concerns about Facebook’s potential conflict of interest in addressing political disinformation on its platform and asks a series of questions about the company’s handling of the doctored video.
In the letter, the Members wrote, “The spread of political disinformation on social media poses grave consequences to our nation’s democracy.”
“We recognize your recent steps to remove fake accounts from the platform. However, removing fake accounts does not address the spreading of political disinformation by real accounts,” the Members continued in the letter. “We are concerned that you and your company are not taking these occurrences seriously and are grossly unprepared for the 2020 election. Specifically, we are concerned that there may be a potential conflict of interest between Facebook’s bottom line and immediately addressing political disinformation on your platform.”
The Members ask the following questions and request that Facebook respond by July 17, 2019:
- When (date and time) was the original doctored video of Speaker Pelosi first reviewed by Facebook, what triggered the review, what standards were used to conduct the review, and what was the outcome of the review?
- Did Facebook review the original doctored video or copies of the doctored video to determine if ad breaks should be allowed in the video, if the video should be boosted, if the video should be delivered through any other form of advertisement, or if the video should appear in connection with any advertisements on Facebook’s platform? For each review, please note the date and time when the review was conducted and the outcome (e.g., was the video approved for ad breaks, boosting, etc.).
- Did the original doctored video or copies of the doctored video serve ads at any time (did ads appear in the beginning, during, or at the end of the video), was the video ever boosted, was the video ever delivered through any other form of advertisement, or did the video ever appear in connection with any advertisements on Facebook’s platform? Please specify.
- Did Facebook generate any revenue directly or indirectly from the original video and copies of the video being posted on its platform?
- On average, from the time content is posted on Facebook’s platform, how long does it take Facebook to flag suspicious content to third-party fact-checkers, third-party fact-checkers to review the content, and Facebook to take remedial actions after this review is completed? How long did each of these steps take in the case of the doctored Pelosi video?
- How many product managers does Facebook employ whose full-time job it is to address disinformation, and how many third-party fact-checkers (number of people) does Facebook retain whose primary responsibility it is to fact check content posted on Facebook?
- What determines if content gets reviewed by third-party fact-checkers, and does Facebook require third-party fact-checkers to abide by any standards or timeframes for reviewing content?
- What steps is Facebook taking in advance of the 2020 election to stop the spread of political disinformation by real accounts on its platform?
The following Members joined Rep. McNerney in sending the letter: Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06), Rep. Mike Doyle (PA-18), Rep. Jan Schakowsky (IL-09), Rep. Diana DeGette (CO-01), Rep. Bobby L. Rush (IL-01), Rep. Anna G. Eshoo (CA-18), Rep. Eliot L. Engel (NY-16), Rep. G. K. Butterfield (NC-01), Doris Matsui (CA-06), Rep. Kathy Castor (FL-14), Rep. John P. Sarbanes (MD-03), Rep. Peter Welch (VT-At-Large), Rep. Ben Ray Luján (NM-03), Rep. Paul Tonko (NY-20), Rep. Yvette D. Clarke (NY-09), Rep. David Loebsack (IA-02), Rep Joseph P. Kennedy, III (MA-04), Rep. Tony Cárdenas (CA-29), Rep. Raul Ruiz (CA-36), Rep. Debbie Dingell (MI-12), Rep. Marc A. Veasey (TX-33), Rep. Ann McLane Kuster (NH-02), Rep. Robin L. Kelly (IL-02), Rep. Nanette Diaz Barragán (CA-44), Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (DE-At-Large), and Rep. Darren Soto (FL-09).
A copy of the letter is available here.
Editors Note: Here is the video
11 comments
Funny how when a Democrat is a victim of Fake News/ Fake Videos,
then and only then do Democrats want to do something about it
Pathetic
Indeed Stephen…I personally thought the video was hilarious. You know what they say if you can’t take a joke. &%#@em
This was NOT an altered video. That’s how she speaks! She also has a problem with her dentures and tries to adjust them as she speaks. Tries to keep the dentures from slipping down like they have been when she gave speeches recently in Los Angeles to the “Women in Film” group.
Google it Sandra. They are side by side. First one is actual and the second one is altered. (the one on the right) It’s worth a look…believe me.
No one uses GOOGLE anymore because they track all your online activities! Sandra is correct! This video is not altered. I’ve been present at a lot of Pelosi’s speeches and that’s how she comes across. Most of the time, she’s totally confused by even what she says. The poor woman should get out of politics and enjoy spending whatever time she has left with her grandchildren. Life is short!
Paranoid much? Your being tracked right now. How can you say it’s not. They are side by side and different. Same wording exactly but one is slurred.
I work in the film industry and I know what is doctored and what isn’t. Having watched Pelosi speak at a few functions, this is exactly how she comes across. The woman is very confused probably because of some health issues.
We should thank her for her tireless work in the political field and hope she can take a rest from it and enjoy her remaining time with her family and relatives.
Barbara, I haven’t used GOOGLE for over five years now and never will. They gather information on you through various means and that’s why I don’t do “social media” …. which is their primary means of gathering as much as they can on you.
And what is congress doing about “spreading of political disinformation ” by CNN?
Politics is dirty business. Nobody should be surprised.
I use google all the time. I couldn’t care less what they track. I’m cautious, but not paranoid. Politics is boring, and Nancy Pelosi isn’t on my radar screen.
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