Peter Thiel Claimed Zuckerberg Agreed to Push 'State-Sanctioned Conservatism' Under Trump Deal, Book

[hedda_foil]

https://www.thedailybeast.com/peter-thiel-claimed-mark-zuckerberg-agreed-to-push-state-sanctioned-conservatism-under-trump-deal-book-says/

During a meeting in Washington, D.C. in 2019, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg agreed to not fact-check political posts if the Trump administration would steer clear of any “heavy-handed regulations,” venture capitalist Peter Thiel told an associate, according to a new book. The associate alleged that at the meeting—which was also attended by Thiel, former President Trump, Jared Kushner, and their spouses—Zuckerberg essentially promised to champion “state-sanctioned conservatism,” The Contrarian: Peter Thiel and Silicon Valley’s Pursuit of Power says. Zuckerberg denied the existence of a deal, saying that was “pretty ridiculous.”

There's an original article linked from The New Yorker of short piece here but I've used up my free articles for September.

[Dream Girl]

1. Post anything negative on DU about Facebook and people will hate on you big time.

[Beakybird]

2. Really? I don't get that sense.

[lagomorph777]

6. Not from me! Fuckerberg and Falsebook should be shut down for what they have been doing.

Hundreds of thousands of Americans have died as a result of the disinformation he profits from, whether helping to elect Trump and his cronies, or telling them lies about COVID, masks, and vaccinations.

[Botany]

11. Therese Hong Trump 2016 campaign: "Without facebook we wouldn't have won."

Link to tweet

BTW Zuckerberg was well aware of the Trump Campaign, Russia, and Cambridge Analytica using
Facebook to bath targeted people with disinformation in 2016.

[BigmanPigman]

29. I must have posted that a dozen times

when it came to light. The woman's attitude always bugged me. She seemed so nonchalant, like this was no big deal. La de da.

[Botany]

32. A good friend who I have known for years and is an engineer type and very smart has been sucked ...

... into the right wing disinformation web sites crap. The Facebook/Russian driven 2016 misinformation
about Hillary and her "email scandal" got a good hold on him and have made him much more receptive
to other right wing crap. He is now getting his information from a place called the heterodox academy.

[sarcasmo]

22. Fakebook

[lagomorph777]

23. FascistBook

[2naSalit]

38. +1

[DrToast]

10. Huh?

Is there a different Facebook you’re thinking of?

[Politicub]

31. This is true.

Facebook is toxic, and people are hooked. I was hooked for years.

[NonPC]

34. Facebook and Zuckerburg are Evil

Ever since Zuckerburg stole the idea for Facebook, he and his co-conspirator (Sheryl Sandburg) have done everything they could to enrich themselves at the expense of our society. I have never had a Facebook account or owned their stock and am damn proud of it.

[FakeNoose]

45. I've been trashing FB for years on DU

I've even posted specific links for anyone who wants to quit Facebook and delete all photos/posts. Yes some DUers are FB lovers, for the purposes of limited contact with family and friends.

The political/crazy nonsense happens to people who click on everything and don't block anything.

[luv2fly]

49. Absolutely

I've experienced the snark personally, usually in the form of what I assume the writer thinks is a witty comment but more often than not, isn't. I believe these folks are really just trying to defend their actions as they can't imagine being without their beloved addiction, no matter that the platform knowingly hurts people.

The willful ignorance is stupifying. Facebook is the users.

[summer_in_TX]

50. I'm pretty sure Facebook and Zuckerburg are widely despised and distrusted here.

Cambridge Analytica is one huge reason.

[luv2fly]

51. But what percentage of those who "despise and distrust" it...

Still use it and defend said use? Too many.

[summer_in_TX]

52. I confess that I am one of those that does use FB.

I manage a page for the League of Women Voters of Hays County and two other nonprofits. Since only those who have a page can do that, I have to keep mine. Periodically I need to post on my page to keep enough views up to make it effective when I try to fund raise for the nonprofits. Not great, but I don’t do anything political there. That normally includes page likes or post likes.

[SoonerPride]

3. Facebook is poison

DELETE YOUR ACCOUNT

[MurrayDelph]

7. I would, but all of my friends live over 150 miles away

Most live over 1,000 miles away, so Facebook is a useful tool.

[Dream Girl]

8. I can't tell if you're serouis.

[MurrayDelph]

12. Thank you for your well-reasoned opinion

Please remember to flush and wash your hands.

[Dream Girl]

17. Again, I can't tell if you expect people to believe that the reason you can't delete your account is

Because family is 1,000 miles away. If you feel you need Facebook to say connected with them, you’re not that close. Per Sheryl Sanberg, Facebook is for loose social connections.

[SoonerPride]

14. I faced a similar dilemma when I deleted my account

Those who were truly my friends continued to contact me via text, emails, and the good old fashioned phone call and hand written card or letter.

The rest turned out weren't really my friends anyway.

[wnylib]

41. I am not on Facebook either

and never have been. No Twitter, either.

Texts, e-mail, and phone calls only.

No letters, though. Except for junk mail, I have not seen a letter in ages. Just notes inside of cards I get or send.

[lagomorph777]

15. Do your phone and email have 150 mile radius limits?

[MurrayDelph]

18. No, but while phone calls are great for one-on-one contacts

They do not have the same cocktail party vibe.

[lagomorph777]

20. I see. I'm not familiar with that vibe; haven't been to cocktail parties.

I hope the consequences for America are worth it to you.

[Dream Girl]

19. If you need Facebook to connect to "friends", theres not not actually " friends".

[Dream Girl]

21. Are are friends and there are Facebook "friends".

I have friends across the country, I manage to talk, zoom, text, and email them. But they’re actually friends.

[nycbos]

24. What about zoom?

[Celerity]

26. Set up a private Skype room. It is free and super easy, and it can be text only, plus you can call

(both vid or voice only) for free as well. You can share links, files, etc.

[KS Toronado]

37. Email can cover that distance in a split second

without having to log in and give your personal information away. Plus it's more personable than
a fakebook post that says....Hey everyone....lookie.

[2naSalit]

39. That excuse is so old and used it has a rind on it.

Support the USPS instead, make phone calls.

[rockfordfile]

46. "useful tool" you should get a life.

At this point if you support traitorbook then you support trump.

[MurrayDelph]

47. To those who have engaged in well-intentioned tech-splaining

Thank you, but your suggestions have all been tried and do not fit within the boundaries of our needs.

If they work for you, I am happy for you, but the world is not made up of one-size-fits-all solutions.

For the record, I detest Zuckerberg and his cohorts, but too many of my friends use his product for me to train them into other options. Especially when, as has been mentioned previously, most of them live over one thousand miles away.

Murray Delph,
Retired educator and computer guy.

[DBoon]

16. I use it a lot less

less use = less advertising revenue for the

Anytime I have an alternative, i use the alternative.

It's how I deal with Amazon too.

[rockfordfile]

44. I agree

Get out more and get a life.

[eShirl]

4. I can believe it.

[Hugh_Lebowski]

5. We're talking about 2 people nobody should trust in the first place

... contradicting one another.

I'll need something more than either Thiel or Zuck's 'word' before I believe anything about this.

[2naSalit]

40. +1

All I know is what I've known for several years, fb is poison to a society and should die a swift and painful death.

[nycbos]

25. Not sure who to believe.

One schmuck says one thing and another schmuck says the opposite.

[hay rick]

27. We have a two stopped-clocks conundrum.

Is one right? Neither? Both right in parallel universes? It's 5 o'clock somewhere.

[padah513]

28. Let's see who sues who for libel

[nycbos]

30. What if Zuckerberg sues Theil and Theil then countersues Zuckerberg?

[Joinfortmill]

33. I'm not surprised. Regulations required here.

[Racygrandma]

35. There are good groups on it

I look at a pastel art group on Facebook, lots of talented people with good art tips. Lots of crap posts also. If someone posts outrageous stuff I just ask not to see the posts. Basically I do not look at peoples posts, just the art groups. I have deleted my account a few times though because it was getting so bad.

[infullview]

36. I hate that sniveling milktoast rat Zuckerberg

You want to talk about a cancer on society, holy crap! He's a POS. So socially inept he developed a web site to spy on the cute girls that rejected him when he was just a poor student.

[Snackshack]

42. Peter Thiel

It seems just wants to see the village burn. What a POS.

As for FB it’s garbage given it’s destructive nature. Fine for reminders about birthdays and seeing a picture of the new whatever someone bought or cooked but beyond that it’s garbage. I logged on not long ago to answer a question a friend had after being off it for 6-7months and was immediately bombarded with divisive covid / vaccine / Dem / GOP crap.

[rockfordfile]

43. Traitorbook. I think that traitorbook had a employee working at Cambridge Analytica

[andym]

48. Perhaps the kernel of truth in this story

is that one could easily see Zuckerberg saying something like he wouldn't interfere with political communication on Facebook as he has championed free communication or all kinds. Thiel himself is a dedicated libertarian. Libertarianism is an aspect of American conservatism, so Thiel could have made some remark that about liking a state supporting libertarianism. The associate could have taken this a little differently and viola.