Scott Walker accuses Facebook of bias -- without tangible evidence

Ignoring both the U.S. Constitution and biblical lessons, Walker launches petition against social media site in an effort to gain campaign dollars

The U.S. Constitution codifies the right of the accused to face those who make accusations against them of crimes or other improprieties.

Being allowed to face one’s accuser can also be traced all the way back to the Bible, to Acts 25:16, which pointed out the right Paul had to face those making claims of criminal conduct against him:

...it is not the Roman custom to hand over anyone before they have faced their accusers and have had an opportunity to defend themselves against the charges.

Though they haven’t been brought before a court quite yet, social media website Facebook deserves similar treatment before any conclusions should be drawn about it purportedly using bias in filtering out conservative news stories on its Trending Stories section.

The accusations were reported earlier this month by tech site Gizmodo, relying on the criticism of one former conservative content curator who worked as a contractor for Facebook.

The contractor hasn’t revealed him- or herself, nor has their evidence been provided by Gizmodo. The reporting isn’t verified, and the accusations don’t have much of a leg to stand on at this point in time.

For its own part, Facebook has responded in an appropriate and commendable manner. Mark Zuckerberg, chief executive and co-founder of the social media giant, has made himself available to meet with concerned members of conservative media, including Glenn Beck, S.E. Cupp, and others.

"I'm going in with an open mind and an eagerness to learn more," Cupp said. "Conservatives and Silicon Valley actually come down on the same side of many issues and share some common concerns. I'm sure we'll find plenty to talk about, and I'm honored to have been included."

If some concrete form of evidence is presented that would suggest Facebook has tampered with its Trending Topics section of the site, then criticism is warranted. That part of the site has been billed as being unbiased, and if it’s discovered that curators have indeed meddled with it, purposely keeping conservative news from trending on the site, then there is definitely cause for concern and outrage.

However, no evidence has yet surfaced to suggest improper management of that section. Still, many conservative organizations and leaders have tried to capitalize on the (so far baseless) accusations, including Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker.

Walker has taken his tirade to Twitter (and to Facebook itself), while also creating a petition/fundraising drive asking for support to “stand up against conservative suppression” on Facebook.

“Be sure to sign the petition and stand against Facebook’s attempt to silence conservatives,” he wrote last week.

Walker is certainly free to share his own thoughts on the matter, but he is foolishly leaping to conclusions. There is no proof yet, besides hearsay evidence, that Facebook has done anything wrong.

As the son of a pastor, he is being forgetful of the cautionary lines from Acts 25:16; and as an elected official, he’s being forgetful of the Sixth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Both demand that the accused be allowed to face their accusers before judgment is passed. Walker ignores that principle, and judges Facebook anyway, without evidence to support his claim.

Of course, we’ve seen in the past that Walker hasn’t been the best biblical scholar, nor has he been a reliable authority on Constitutional values.

Walker is able to give up the principles found in both, willing to overlook values important to our nation and to many of its people in order to make a quick buck for his campaign coffers.

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