Mark Zuckerberg seen for the first time since the launch of Meta as he returns to the beach after foiling
Facebook has again been accused of censorship – this time by an alleged victim of former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo – after the social media giant banned an advertisement from its site for its new book because it contains the word “penis” in the title.
Karen Hinton, a former Cuomo aide who accused the disgraced governor of bullying and hugging her “inappropriately” 20 years ago, writes about the sexism experienced in government in her book, Penis Politics: A Memoir of Women, Men and Power.
Hinton’s publisher had planned to place ads for the book on Facebook, but the word for male genitalia seemed to sound the alarm bells and the posts were rejected, she said.
Karen Hinton, pictured with a selection of her favorite books, was planning to run a Facebook ad campaign for her memoir, but the ads were rejected because the book’s title contains the word penis.
Hinton shared his grievances with Facebook online, saying the actions were “not surprising”
Facebook has banned ads on its site for Hinton’s book, which deals with sexism in government rather than anything sexual
“Today Facebook banned ads for my upcoming book Penis Politics because the company opposes the title,” Hinton told Page Six.
“Facebook should be ashamed of itself. My book deals with toxic power relations in schools, media, and politics. It’s not about sex.
“Facebook’s actions are not surprising. The company has a documented history of promoting misogynistic content and sexual violence against women. Yet they are afraid of the word “penis” in a book on sexual harassment.
“Facebook also uses a double standard which is mind-boggling in 2021. Facebook has pages and pages on the highly acclaimed play, Vagina Monologues.
“They kiss the ‘vagina’ but seem to be afraid of a small ‘penis.’ The Facebook ad campaign for my book was due to start today.
“I ask Facebook to reverse this decision and stand up for free speech, not ban books,” Hinton said.
Hinton, who was also an assistant to the outgoing mayor of New York, Bill de Blasio, had previously coined the term “penis politics” to describe the ways in which powerful men impose their control on their subordinates.
His memoir deals with “the toxic mixture of ego, law and community culture” in politics.
Facebook has come under fire for the company’s decision making on what is right for its site, including its ongoing ban on former President Donald Trump.
Karen Hinton, who was an assistant to outgoing New York mayor Bill de Blasio, said her memoir was about “the toxic mix of ego, law and community culture” in politics
Hinton accused Andrew Cuomo of groping her 20 years ago
The company changed its name to Meta last month after whistleblower Frances Haugen, the company’s former product manager, leaked thousands of internal documents revealing its inner workings and became known as Facebook Papers.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg dismissed his claims, saying the attacks on the company “distorted” his work.
The tech giant claims to have deleted 97% of hate messages from the platform, but leaked research showed that its own staff estimated it only deleted messages that generated around 3-5% of hate speech from the platform. hate and 0.6% content that violated its rules on violence and incitement.
Last month, a survey detailed how Facebook’s algorithms actively promoted misogynistic content to certain users.
The Facebook and Instagram platforms are said to have suggested pages for users in their news feed that refer to sexual violence and disturbing memes about sex acts if they show signs of hostility towards women online.
Haugen claimed the tech giant “subsidizes hate” because its business model makes it cheaper to run angry and divisive ads.
She said there was “no doubt” that the platform’s systems would lead to more violent events, as its most extreme content targets the most impressionable people.
Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg (pictured) has previously dismissed Frances Haugen’s claims, saying his attacks on the company “distort” the work it does.” class=”blkBorder img-share” style=”max-width:100%” />
Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg (pictured) has previously dismissed Frances Haugen’s claims, saying his attacks on the company “distort” the work it does.
She said Facebook was “very good at dancing with data” to make it seem like it was at the peak of the problem, but was reluctant to sacrifice even a “profit slither” to make the platform more sure.
Zuckerberg spoke about the matter on October 6, saying, “The argument that we are deliberately offering content that angers people for profit is deeply illogical.
“We make money from ads, and advertisers constantly tell us that they don’t want their ads to be next to harmful or angry content. And I don’t know of any tech company that sets out to create products that make people angry or depressed. Moral, business, and product incentives all go in the opposite direction.
Earlier this year, Facebook was accused of promoting misogyny and sexual violence.
Women members of Congress as well as politicians in the European Union have pleaded with Facebook to “step up and protect women in politics” from threats of violence and sexism on its platform.
“We implore Facebook to do more to protect the ability of women to engage in democratic discourse and foster a safe and empowering space for women,” read a letter from California Democratic Representative Jackie Speier, who is also co-chair of the Democratic Women’s Caucus.
