About that “fifth estate”
In the early days of social media regular people used it to speak truth to power.
Now the powerful people know how to use it now too, with $$ to promote their messages.
Is it still a great equalizer? pic.twitter.com/gqXzZVhRhh

— Sarah Frier (@sarahfrier) October 17, 2019

One of my worst fear is that China will use its market access to exert censorship beyond the border and take over the entire internet. We've seen that as the case with Apple and Blizzard

Glad to see Facebook setting up an example of not caving inhttps://t.co/B2XXQDnae6

— Jane Manchun Wong (@wongmjane) October 17, 2019

Zuckerberg is giving a speech right now asserting that Facebook policy is motivated by a commitment to free speech.

My reporting found that policy is set by Republican operatives in DC who are obsessed with appeasing Trump https://t.co/5mBoi8301s

— Judd Legum (@JuddLegum) October 17, 2019

i dunno i passed out after he said that the we overcame deep polarization after world war i, the last war that was ever fought

— Julia Carrie Wong (@juliacarriew) October 17, 2019

appreciate zuckerberg putting extensive thoughts on the record re: speech. but my biggest worry is the thing he’ll never address, which is how the architecture of the platform gives a natural advantage to the worst, most divisive actors https://t.co/4pPyB8usep

— Charlie Warzel (@cwarzel) October 17, 2019

Mark is doing a lot of word salad rather than give a really sharp answer to a complex question. Let me boil it down: They cannot control it really except for shutting it down. Taking so long in Myanmar was a “mistake.” Yeah, a mistake.

— Kara Swisher (@karaswisher) October 17, 2019

As many have argued, the big problem isn't Facebook as a propagandist or Facebook as a censor, but that we somehow have to accept either scenario or some faux-neutrality, that Facebook's size and power are inevitable and justified, that Facebook, as it is, must exist: https://t.co/0m4a1SEg0w

— Hamza Shaban (@hshaban) October 17, 2019

hell yeah, it’s zuck-goes-off-on-the-pc-police time

— Ashley Feinberg (@ashleyfeinberg) October 17, 2019

Something funny is going on in these comments. pic.twitter.com/gW4kolgmxK

— Ben Collins (@oneunderscore__) October 17, 2019

fwiw i asked him directly if FB given up on entering china and (smartly) he wont say it outright, probably bc he doesnt want to tank the stock

but between the lines this speech sure seems like giving up on FB China

(it is also politically expedient)https://t.co/UISzl7yziT

— rat king (@MikeIsaac) October 17, 2019

Every time Zuckerberg says he's going to give a speech, I wonder if he really will say something new or stick to his usual talking points. Most of the time it's the latter. https://t.co/mkP8QdZXVu

— Queenie Wong (@QWongSJ) October 16, 2019

this is the funniest lie zuckerberg's told yet about the founding of facebook https://t.co/vf7e15d3Tf

— Max Read (@max_read) October 17, 2019

Zuck is answering the question: What would it take for you to get into China? He said censorship obviously a big issue, but also data localization. He doesn't want to have to store user data in China where it could pose privacy risks (kind ironic...)

— Kurt Wagner (@KurtWagner8) October 17, 2019

i'm genuinely curious what he could possibly say on this that isn't some version of what he's said many times before https://t.co/SsWqr53VCg

— Charlie Warzel (@cwarzel) October 16, 2019

At the end of it, the top ten comments on Mark Zuckerberg's free-speech Facebook livestream are all dictator-at-a-mandatory-parade-level congratulatory.

Here's the most-liked one:

"Thank u for best programme &also Thank u best service for humanity. congratulation ?" pic.twitter.com/HzWzpg47Qu

— Ben Collins (@oneunderscore__) October 17, 2019

Zuckerberg just said that people having the power to express themselves at scale (aka to a lot of people online) is a new form of power. He called it "the fifth estate"

— Kurt Wagner (@KurtWagner8) October 17, 2019

He called out TikTok as a platform where content is censored, like content from the protests in Hong Kong

— Kurt Wagner (@KurtWagner8) October 17, 2019

NEW: Zuckerberg, Inflaming Debate, Asserts Facebook Stands for Free Expression Even As Challenged with Spread of Misinformation: https://t.co/oTHAKOS770 w/ @mikeisaac

— CeciliaKang (@ceciliakang) October 17, 2019

I’m on airplane WiFi but seeing the tweets and have a q:
Is Zuckerberg making any distinction between the right to speak and the right to have that speech amplified? Political ads, algorithmic ordering, many FB debates happen a step after speech itself.

— Sarah Frier (@sarahfrier) October 17, 2019

LMAOOOOOO

If @facebook can’t monetize it, then Zuckerberg is decidedly against free speech. https://t.co/pNunt34UsG

— Sleeping Giants (@slpng_giants) October 17, 2019

I thought Zuckerberg's speech was quite good. It's worth watching, no matter how you feel about Facebook.https://t.co/jQNsBp5SBY

— Ben Thompson (@benthompson) October 17, 2019

Free speech for Mark Zuckerberg and a simulacrum of free speech for others https://t.co/wVdk5CbzaD

— Judd Legum (@JuddLegum) October 17, 2019

“I think we are going to work through this moment,” says Mark. “Part of this is getting our issues out on the table.”
Also issues of Russian trolls! We want to hear from Putin!

— Kara Swisher (@karaswisher) October 17, 2019

FFS this guy still thinks he is going to be benevolent world king someday, doesn't he? https://t.co/vuWI39sSOT

— Molly McKew (@MollyMcKew) October 17, 2019

Amazing that Zuckerberg bemoans the erosion of truth without recognizing his role in facilitating it. https://t.co/ONwvzkOaRX

— Laura Rosenberger (@rosenbergerlm) October 17, 2019

Zuckerberg is prime minister of a virtual nation of 2.7B people. He says he doesn't think it's right for tech platforms to make decisions on free speech. He owns the podium, profits from the exercise of free speech. Who is responsible for preventing harm and erosion of truth? pic.twitter.com/v9S0MfQt7d

— Dan Farber (@dbfarber) October 17, 2019

Big change for a man who once implied he would let Xi Jingping name his first born child https://t.co/FWQhVKCDDA https://t.co/yjiRp9WhWR

— Saagar Enjeti (@esaagar) October 17, 2019

$10 says we will see another Facebook crisis in the next 30 days. https://t.co/N5JqzfkDba

— Can (@can) October 17, 2019

Key point from @MikeIsaac today on Zuck's speech: "He also positioned Facebook as an American internet company that wants to spread American values, unlike those in China where the internet is largely controlled by the government" https://t.co/vXBToqtXFE

— Saagar Enjeti (@esaagar) October 17, 2019

Nothing will ever beat Zuck's dishonesty to Congress under oath. https://t.co/xFppJ1ygoU

— David Carroll ? (@profcarroll) October 17, 2019

Oh the anti-conservative bias ? pro-conservative bias. Mark: “We’re doing a good job of making everyone mad at us.” First laughs of the speech!

— Kara Swisher (@karaswisher) October 17, 2019

Obama-esque punctuation in this speech from Zuckerberg. “At least we can... disagree! That’s what freedom of expression...is!”. He’s on the verge of emulating his accent.

— Dave Lee (@DaveLeeBBC) October 17, 2019

Zuck: “Some peo­ple be­lieve that giv­ing more peo­ple a voice is dri­ving di­vi­sion...”

Regulators: Yeh but can we see the algorithms that amplify certain voices to millions and keep them addicted to-

Zuck: “Stop curbing free speech!” https://t.co/Rc4sRMGRlJ

— Parmy Olson (@parmy) October 17, 2019

this is social network ERASURE and i won’t stand for it https://t.co/gxIErjxJ3V

— hunter harris (@hunteryharris) October 17, 2019

Essentially Mark is wrapping himself in the First Amendment, but not in a fresh new way. One interesting thing is to talk about social tension and pulling back on free expression.

— Kara Swisher (@karaswisher) October 17, 2019

Takeaways from Zuckerberg's talk
-Banning political ads would supposedly favor incumbents
-Fb spends more on security now than its revenue at IPO ($5B in 2012)
-He wants to link American companies policing misinfo with Chinese censorshiphttps://t.co/LGlw21fxcW
tip @techmeme

— Josh Constine (@JoshConstine) October 17, 2019

Zuckerberg frames Facebook's critics as if they inviting authoritarianism, and Facebook itself as a bastion of democratic liberation:https://t.co/WegpUAalF4 via @ceciliakang & @MikeIsaac pic.twitter.com/dzqD58kelB

— Hamza Shaban (@hshaban) October 17, 2019

Adore His Excellency, World Emperor https://t.co/eqaaZH9K8c

— David Carroll ? (@profcarroll) October 17, 2019

Beginning to think that eating uncooked goat is not good for your brain https://t.co/nPMoumDdiH

— Adam Weinstein (@AdamWeinstein) October 17, 2019

Behold Mark Zuckerberg’s revised origin story for Facebook, as a way to give people voice during the Iraq war.
(And compare to the Harvard Crimson on Zuckerberg’s hot-or-not tool in 2003 https://t.co/dtm3vunKdE) pic.twitter.com/lmU5ofOJUV

— Sarah Frier (@sarahfrier) October 17, 2019

Zuckerberg just made the China threat again. China is building its own version on the internet, he said, and exporting that version to other countries. There's no guarantee that American values will win out, he warned

— Kurt Wagner (@KurtWagner8) October 17, 2019

What Zuckerberg didn't explain was how banning political ads would favor incumbents when they spend the most... pic.twitter.com/CFxPSRU6Uo

— Josh Constine (@JoshConstine) October 17, 2019

Long, televised speeches by a leader who can't be removed from power: Facebook takes another step towards nationhood https://t.co/42QmKjcZPO pic.twitter.com/LVTw38TRCF

— kadhim (＾ｰ^)ノ (@kadhimshubber) October 16, 2019

talked to mark zuckerberg earlier this week about why he's doing this speech now and what's behind it. heres me story with @ceciliakang https://t.co/UISzl7yziT

— rat king (@MikeIsaac) October 17, 2019

Live tweeting this Mark Zuckerberg @Georgetown event on free speech since a student journalist just told me they are not allowed to ask questions. Plus they apparently collected q’s from students & are picking them rather than Mark getting unfiltered ones. So, sort of free speech

— Kara Swisher (@karaswisher) October 17, 2019

So Zuck is on a stage speaking about free speech... but the student journalists cannot ask questions https://t.co/vOObQvUUiW

— Stephanie Ruhle (@SRuhle) October 17, 2019

We all saw the David Fincher movie! It won three Oscars! Stop lying, Mark! https://t.co/gA4CVdOTJv

— Chriscreama Warren (@film_girl) October 17, 2019

lmao@Georgetown and @facebook cutting off the livestream right as the Q&A portion starts is weak as hell

— rat king (@MikeIsaac) October 17, 2019

Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg asserted his commitment to free speech over more aggressive policing of social-media platforms in a rare policy speech https://t.co/gb9aMFgS0d

— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) October 17, 2019

Lots of thoughts about the Zuckerberg speech, but gut macro reaction is that he is trying very, very hard to convince himself and his employees that they will be the good guys in the history books.

— Kevin Roose (@kevinroose) October 17, 2019

Zuck calling Facebook and social platforms "the Fifth Estate" is going to stick

— rat king (@MikeIsaac) October 17, 2019

lmao, mark zuckerberg trying to say that actually it’s not a problem that facebook has so much power because….. now other [much more easy to regulate] entities have less power?

— Ashley Feinberg (@ashleyfeinberg) October 17, 2019

If this is a big media/political event, then he probably has way too much power to be safe for a democratic society. https://t.co/dgN16oFHjZ

— Kim-Mai Cutler (@kimmaicutler) October 16, 2019

"If he truly believes what he’s saying, then it’s time for him to listen to free expression advocates and recognize that, until Facebook changes its policies, they’re merely empty words." https://t.co/KWl7sTVCSC

— VICE (@VICE) October 17, 2019

Zuckerberg’s speech feels like empty words in the absence of any concrete changes to the company’s questionable policies on speech. https://t.co/7cF3zUs6i3

— Motherboard (@motherboard) October 17, 2019

Crucial context for Zuck's deeply weird and underwhelming speech this afternoon by @jilliancyork https://t.co/w6sy1zELzi

— Jason Koebler (@jason_koebler) October 17, 2019

Mark Zuckerberg Stands for Voice and Free Expression https://t.co/P5DY6QiHGE

— Mike Cernovich (@Cernovich) October 17, 2019

Mark Zuckerberg will livestream on Facebook a speech he's giving tomorrow "my views on voice and free expression", calling it "the most comprehensive take" on his views.https://t.co/ykUzhgxqoQ

— Ken Yeung (@thekenyeung) October 16, 2019

?Zuck speech on speech alert ?

Tomorrow, 10 a.m. pacific / 1 p.m. eastern. Buckle up, it's gonna be a long one.https://t.co/vNcrci9AbH pic.twitter.com/ui9e6GfQmK

— Alex Kantrowitz (@Kantrowitz) October 16, 2019

If you haven't already done so, it's time to leave facebook. It's not about free speech they just don't want to inhibit profits.#FZuckerberg#OneVoice1

The New York Times: Defiant Zuckerberg Says Facebook Won’t Police Political Speech.https://t.co/CXArN75RJF

— Curran (@shock2ya) October 17, 2019

“Mark Zuckerberg is co-opting civil rights history to try to justify Facebook’s policies that do long-term damage to our democracy. The company is in denial about what’s happening.” –@vanitaguptaCRhttps://t.co/SDGHhuh8nY

— The Leadership Conference (@civilrightsorg) October 17, 2019

There's no principle here, other than to say whatever he needs to say at any given moment to maximize power and wealth. Predatory in the exact same way Trump and the GOP are predatory. https://t.co/vAUCbn3fhK

— Brian Beutler (@brianbeutler) October 17, 2019

This is, in a word, horseshit. You're free to say whatever you want on Facebook, but because everything is mediated through algorithms endlessly tweaked by Zuckerberg & Co., what people HEAR is actually controlled by someone else.https://t.co/aSGSa2n9g2

— Bobby Engagement??? (@badtweets4u) October 17, 2019

fwiw i asked him directly if FB given up on entering china and (smartly) he wont say it outright, probably bc he doesnt want to tank the stock

but between the lines this speech sure seems like giving up on FB China

(it is also politically expedient)https://t.co/UISzl7yziT

— rat king (@MikeIsaac) October 17, 2019

Defiant Zuckerberg Says Facebook Won’t Police Political Speech https://t.co/CFIgQpxZaf

— The Progressive Mind (@Libertea2012) October 17, 2019

Predictably, this confuses an individual right to speak with a public right to hear.https://t.co/HzzTOTYFLa

— Mike Ananny (@ananny) October 17, 2019

“Mark Zuckerberg is co-opting civil rights history to try to justify #Facebook’s policies that do long-term damage to our democracy... The company is in denial about what’s happening"--V. Gupta, pres. of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights: https://t.co/NTbcnMZA0n

— Internet Ethics (@IEthics) October 17, 2019

마크 주커 버그 조지 타운 연설 : 페이스북의 정치 광고를 금지 않을거야 https://t.co/YEbnhLOTWU
• "오늘날 전세계의 글로벌 인터넷의 상태는 주로 미국의 기업과 강력한 자유로운 표현 가치를 가지는 플랫폼에 의해 정의되어 있습니다"라고 그는 말했습니다.

— editoy (@editoy) October 18, 2019

IDK it seems revealing that there are a lot of things Facebook expressly says it won't allow -- claims that produce "voter suppression" or which constitue "bullying" -- but that fact-checking claims in politician's ads is somehow a bridge too far?https://t.co/mfrGl4RNwP

— Nate Silver (@NateSilver538) October 18, 2019

of course.....Zuckerberg runs to a Murdoch newspaper to explain why FB is happy to let Trump to lie w/o pause this campaign; https://t.co/ThqvpJR3Gq

— Eric Boehlert (@EricBoehlert) October 18, 2019

Oh look Mark Zuckerberg is invoking Frederick Douglass so we’re all good now https://t.co/5vFJ9yPB9M pic.twitter.com/qtP9zACDEI

— Bill Grueskin (@BGrueskin) October 18, 2019

Of course, as @jilliancyork incisively points out, some of these efforts have been flawed, insufficient, and opaque. 7/https://t.co/zxzLmzVPXn

— nicolewong (@nicolewong) October 18, 2019

At the very least, here is @jilliancyork 's take: https://t.co/9I1tW3v5QZ

— Kate Klonick (@Klonick) October 17, 2019

EFF's cynicism is truly beyond belief. Here, its director of "free expression" pushes it to be open to even more Nazism and Koch propaganda, actually claiming that "free expression experts" and "conservative figures" name different groups https://t.co/5dTShaADHq

— David Golumbia (@dgolumbia) October 18, 2019

Motherboard Mark Zuckerberg's Promise to Respect Free Expression Is So Far Just Empty Words: Zuckerberg’s speech feels like empty words in the absence of any concrete changes to the company’s questionable… https://t.co/I0oxl1047B #Facebook #MarkZuckerberg Via @motherboard pic.twitter.com/Lj6ZgTCSh0

— Bradley Jon Eaglefeather (@bjeaglefeather) October 18, 2019

As usual, @jilliancyork's take is a good one. https://t.co/t43Rf1LgAU
And, it is true that, if Zuck believed the above, he would change a bunch at FB, including the names policy.

— Alexander Macgillivray (@amac) October 18, 2019

Mark Zuckerberg's Promise to Respect Free Expression Is So Far Just Empty Words: Zuckerberg’s speech feels like empty words in the absence of any concrete changes to the company’s questionable policies on speech. https://t.co/bCygUqA9F9 pic.twitter.com/rvJ2NdqUH6

— Zion Tech Group (@ZionTechGroup) October 17, 2019

i wanted to like Mark Zuckerberg's speech today. here are a few reasons it disappoints. https://t.co/geXek6fLdx pic.twitter.com/8w5ScjmtLS

— David Kaye (@davidakaye) October 18, 2019

“I’m here today because I believe we must continue to stand for free expression...”

Oh come on. This entire speech could be summarised as ‘please don’t make Facebook responsible for the content it publishes in the same way that media outlets are’ https://t.co/7vOkje8w5V

— Belinda Barnet (@manjusrii) October 18, 2019

Zuckerberg’s theory of free speech is dangerously naive given his role re: speech globally. He has obviously read broad histories of free speech, but his manifesto is devoid of engagement w/ the notion of power especially re: the function of his platform.https://t.co/ZdIi9Mk3P5

— Dr. Guy McHendry (@acaguy) October 17, 2019

Mark Zuckerberg's effectively State of the Platform speech at Georgetown was chillingly naïve. [A rather grumpy thread...] https://t.co/OpdCAnAUFL

— Tama Leaver (@tamaleaver) October 18, 2019

My first thought in response to Zuck’s free speech speech @ Georgetown
“Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not to his own facts.” - Daniel Patrick Moynihan

Mark Zuckerberg Stands for Voice and Free Expression | Facebook Newsroom https://t.co/cQ4STpt2hv

— Ghela Boskovich (@GhelaBoskovich) October 18, 2019

Important talk from Mark @Georgetown on voice and free expression today: https://t.co/sRobJsyASH

— Guy Rosen (@guyro) October 18, 2019

Defiant doesn't mean brave. It doesn't mean telling liars they are free to lie on your platform. My first tweet, ever, challenged Mark Z on his statement that privacy was a thing of the past. Now, he's telling us that truth is a thing of the past. No! https://t.co/pfUcvwg97o

— Sherry Turkle (@STurkle) October 18, 2019

Bottom line implication of Zuck’s Georgetown speech and WSJ op-ed: The company is laser focused on heading off a Republican breakup attempt led by from Trump’s Justice Department, to the exclusion of any concerns and brickbats from the left.https://t.co/PxRa0cOMgO

— Nick Confessore (@nickconfessore) October 18, 2019

Mark Zuckerberg's speech today shows how little he learned from 2016, and how unprepared Facebook is to handle the 2020 election. https://t.co/2JHCuihexR

— Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) October 18, 2019

"The collapse of journalism and democracy in the face of the internet is not inevitable. To save democracy and the free press, we must eliminate Google and Facebook’s control over the information commons." Right on @matthewstoller https://t.co/GUTgkgC17p

— Scott Galloway (@profgalloway) October 18, 2019

Note how their news reporting is no longer neutral: the headline frames Zuckerberg as a bad actor, “inflaming debate,” when all he’s doing is coming out in support of something that is already constitutionally protected in the United States https://t.co/WCIW4VyuRf

— Claire Lehmann (@clairlemon) October 18, 2019

If we hadn't allowed Facebook to eat Instagram and WhatsApp, they would be getting a huge swath of new users today, from all the people quitting FB.https://t.co/ttJ5jqaXuW

— Zephyr Teachout (@ZephyrTeachout) October 18, 2019

This is some Orwellian nonsense. Facebook polices political speech every day on behalf of the Pharma cartel. https://t.co/WuO41jUgK7

— Toby Rogers PhD, MPP (@uTobian) October 17, 2019

Well, I can't believe it but at face value I actually agree with Mark Zuckerberg.

Now he just needs to unban peoplehttps://t.co/bcv4ujbdSq

— Tim Pool (@Timcast) October 18, 2019