In a recent turn of events, Meta, the parent company of
Facebook, has admitted to an error in taking down the Facebook page of
Hillsdale College, a conservative Christian liberal arts college in Michigan.
The page, which had over 300,000 followers, was shut down on the same day the
college launched a new online course critical of Communism and Marxism.
The online course in question, titled "Cultural
Marxism," aimed to examine the impact of Marxist ideologies on various
aspects of society, including racial tensions, radical feminism, transgender
ideology, open borders, fiscal irresponsibility, unequal protection of the
laws, and the loss of basic rights. The course description highlighted the
effects of Marx's ideas on the histories of the Soviet Union and China, while
also noting the continued popularity of Marxism among those who shape cultural,
academic, and political lives.
Following the launch of the course, Hillsdale College's
online courses Facebook page was suddenly shut down. The school took to X
(formerly Twitter) to express their concern, stating that Facebook was denying
people access to their course on repressive ideologies. Meta initially informed
the college that such issues are usually resolved within 24 hours.
However, in a statement to Fox News Digital, Meta admitted
that the page was taken down in error and was restored before they received the
inquiry from the media outlet. The timing of the incident, coinciding with the
launch of the course critical of Marxism, raised suspicions among the college's
representatives.
Emily Stack Davis, Hillsdale College's executive director of
media relations and communications, expressed her dissatisfaction with Meta's
explanation. She pointed out that the ads Meta claimed to have mistakenly
flagged had been running unchanged for over a year on the college's main
Facebook page, not the online courses page that was taken down.
Davis also highlighted the potential consequences of the
incident, stating that a third of the college's online course enrollments come
via Facebook, with the majority occurring in the first days after a course
launch. She estimated that the college may have lost thousands of potential
enrollees due to the page being down for nearly 100 hours.
Hillsdale College has seen a significant increase in
applications, recording a 53% rise as of April 2022. The college's classical
education approach has become an increasingly popular alternative to many U.S.
colleges and universities that have been criticized for adopting
"woke" ideologies and curricula.
The incident with Meta comes at a time when conservative
voices have expressed concerns about potential censorship and bias on social
media platforms. The timing of the page's shutdown, coinciding with the launch
of a course critical of Marxism, has only fueled these concerns.
In related news, Vice President Kamala Harris recently
announced her intention to institute a "federal ban on price gouging on
food and groceries" if she becomes president. The move, aimed at
preventing "big corporations" from taking advantage of consumers, was
met with swift criticism from various media outlets, including the New York
Times, Washington Post, CNN, and Newsweek.
Critics likened the proposed price control measures to those
often implemented by communist governments. Former President Donald Trump even
described the move as a "Soviet style" economic policy.
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