A Republican Senate candidate in Missouri has been blocked from Facebook for violating its community standards by hosting a giveaway for an AR-15 rifle in a Facebook Live video.
But Austin Petersen disagrees with the 30-day block, and responded by writing an open letter to Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg on his campaign website.
“It’s difficult to ignore that this action comes during a period of heightened tension regarding Facebook’s role in our elections and its perceived bias against conservative voices,” Petersen wrote, and said he was “shocked” to find his profile blocked and the Facebook Live video promoting the giveaway removed, along with a status update about the giveaway.
Petersen said he is “confident” that his posts were “consistent with Facebook’s policies,” although the social media website clearly states the prohibition of the trade of firearms: “The purchase, sale or trade of firearms, ammunition and explosives between private individuals isn’t allowed on Facebook… We understand that some of these items may not be legally regulated everywhere people use Facebook.”
Petersen took promoting his giveaway to Twitter instead:
6 Craziest Bets Facebook Is Making for the Next Decade (Photos)
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg unveiled a 10-year road map for the world's biggest social network, including projects in virtual reality and artificial intelligence, at its annual developers' conference F8 in San Francisco.
Facebook
Zuckerberg said he believes virtual reality headsets will be no different than traditional pairs of glasses in 10 years.
Screenshot/Facebook's F8 Live Stream
The company released a reference design for a camera shaped like a U.F.O. that can capture 360-degree video.
Facebook
Facebook Messenger is about to get an army of bots. Chatbots, which are programs powered by artificial intelligence that do simple things, are going to integrate into Facebook's instant messaging system. It makes it easier for companies like CNN to send you personalized stories and other tasks.
Facebook
Facebook is obsessed with live video, and it wants you to be able to stream live from any device -- even a drone. To mark a move opening up the programming to Facebook live streaming, Zuckerberg flew a drone out on stage that filmed everybody in the packed conference hall.
Screenshot/Facebook F8 Live Stream
Zuckerberg kicked off the conference by making a veiled jab at Donald Trump. “I hear fearful voices calling for building walls ... Instead of building walls, we can help build bridges," he said, as he explained that connecting the world is key to Facebook's future. (Maybe Trump won't notice: His preferred social network is Twitter, after all.)
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CEO Mark Zuckerberg believes you’ll watch VR on your regular old Warby Parker glasses in 10 years, see the other big announcements Facebook made at its annual F8 conference
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg unveiled a 10-year road map for the world's biggest social network, including projects in virtual reality and artificial intelligence, at its annual developers' conference F8 in San Francisco.