Google, Facebook and Twitter are Politically Biased Alleges Donald Trump

In a fresh assault on Silicon Valley, US President Donald Trump stepped up claims of political bias by the big tech firms after one of his key congressional allies sued Twitter claiming it of discriminating against the conservatives.

The latest reaction from the President comes at a time when the online platforms are facing heightened scrutiny on how they filter and amplify content. The industry though is fiercely defending itself against claims of political bias.

Donald Trump attacked the social media giants using the same platform retweeting news of a lawsuit filed by Republican Representative Devin Nunes seeking $250 million in damages from Twitter. Trump tweeted, “Facebook, Google and Twitter, not to mention the Corrupt Media, are sooo on the side of the Radical Left Democrats”.

During a Press Conference later, he went further when asked about his posts on the social media, he said, “It seems to be if they are conservative, if they are Republicans, in a certain group, there is discrimination. I see it on Twitter and Facebook”.

In a separate tweet, the President pointed out an incident in which his social media director Dan Scavino was blocked temporarily on Facebook. “I will be looking into this!” Trump wrote, adding the hashtag #StopTheBias.

Facebook meanwhile has said Scavino, who has claimed to merely responding to comments, was briefly blocked because of an activity detected as spam, not for any political reason and also added that it had apologized to him.

Reacting on the allegations on the tech companies, Ed Black who heads the Computer & Communications Industry Association, which represents major firms including Facebook and Google said, “Tech firms do not, and it would be foolish for them to make conscious decisions to discriminate on political grounds”.

Republican Representative Devin Nunes who has alleged in his lawsuit filed in a Virginia state court claimed, that Twitter shadow bans conservatives, making their messages less visible. He also claimed Twitter was very negligent as it has failed to crack down on some parody accounts with his names such as “Devin Nunes Mom” and “Devin Nunes Cow” which accused him of obstructing investigations into the president.

Devin Nunes, the former Republican leader was appointed by the House to probe into Russian interference in the US election. But in 2017 he stepped aside after being criticized for compromising the probe by his visits to the White House.