CPJ calls for investigation of attacks against journalists in Pakistan

Navya Singh | National Law U. Odisha, IN

JUNE 5, 2024 

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) on Tuesday urged Pakistani authorities to investigate a series of violent attacks on journalists that have escalated across the country.

Haider Mastoi, a reporter for Sindh News TV and Times News, was ambushed by unidentified gunmen on motorbikes in Rohri, Sukkur district on May 29. He was shot four times, while his cameraman was assaulted. Both men are now recovering in the hospital.

A day later, Chaudhary Ikhlaq, a correspondent for the Daily Express, was similarly targeted. Ikhlaq, who had received death threats over his critical reporting, was shot by assailants on a motorbike and is also recovering in the hospital.

These incidents are part of a pattern of violence against journalists in Pakistan. Earlier in May, four journalists were killed in separate attacks across Punjab, Sindh, Baluchistan, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces. Nasrullah Gadani, a reporter for Awami Awaz, was fatally shot in Sindh province on May 21. His bold investigations into local feudal lords and political figures may have made him a target. Journalist Kamran Dawar‘s killing prompted condemnations from UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay. Kamran had received threats for his critical views against militancy. Journalists Ashfaq Ahmed Sial and Muhammad Siddique Mengal suffered the same fate. However, the reasons behind their murder are still unknown.

CPJ reported that, “The killings represent the highest number of journalists killed in the South Asian country in any single month since CPJ began collecting data in 1992″. The attacks have drawn international condemnation and calls for immediate action. Despite multiple arrests by Sindh police in connection with some cases, the overall response from law enforcement has been criticized as inadequate.

CPJ stated that “Since 1992, 64 journalists have been killed in connection with their work in Pakistan”. Due to this, the country consistently ranks on CPJ’s Global Impunity Index. CPJ’s call to action emphasizes the urgent need for Pakistan’s government to protect jouralists and ensure that perpetrators of violence are brought to justice.

5 Surprising Takeaways From India’s Election Results

BY ASTHA RAJVANSHI
JUNE 5, 2024 

After six long weeks of voting in the grueling heat, India’s election delivered stunning results.

With all of the 640 million votes now counted, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is poised to preside over a rare, third consecutive term in power—making him only the second Indian prime minister to do so after Congress leader Jawaharlal Nehru in 1962. With all its allies, Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has also managed to secure a majority of 283 seats in the Lok Sabha, the 543-seat lower house of India’s Parliament. Under India’s electoral system, the party or alliance that wins more than 272 seats can form a government.

Yet, the results have shocked most pollsters and Modi supporters—and indeed, the country. That’s because the BJP won only 240 seats this election, effectively losing the single-party majority Modi has enjoyed since he was first elected in 2014.

“Modi will have to act in a more consultative, deliberative, and inclusive manner,” says Milan Vaishnav, director of the South Asia Program at Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. “This is anathema to the PM who, going back to his days as Gujarat chief minister, has never had to truly worry about coalition politics.”

As the election draws to a close, it has brought with it a series of waves that will reshape India’s political landscape for the next five years and beyond. But ask any Indian about the election outcome and they’ll tell you that the country’s democracy is so vibrant that it never fails to surprise. “Nobody knows anything about India. This is one thing one should know about India,” one observer even posted on X.

Here are some of the most surprising takeaways from India’s 2024 election.

Busting Modi’s “400 paar” promise

This election, Modi and the BJP ran on an ambitious slogan: "Ab ki baar, 400 paar.” That meant that the ruling party was aiming to win more than 400 seats with its NDA alliance—which ultimately backfired as the BJP did not even win a simple majority on its own, a stark departure from the BJP’s thumping victory in 2019 when it won an unprecedented 303 seats. The result also means an unprecedented electoral stall for Modi, who in his 23 years in politics as the chief minister of the state of Gujarat from 2002 and then as India’s prime minister from 2014, has fallen way short of a majority despite appearing as the central face of the BJP’s campaign. (In the BJP’s 48-page manifesto, Modi’s name is featured 67 times.)

BJP loses stronghold in Uttar Pradesh

Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous state, holds significant sway in Indian elections with 80 parliamentary seats. In 2014 and 2019, the BJP won 71 and 62 seats respectively that helped fuel the party’s rise to power in Delhi. But 2024 looks very different. The BJP won just 33 seats, while its allies secured three seats. Most notably, it lost in the Faizabad constituency, where Modi inaugurated the Ram temple in Ayodhya earlier this year, seen as a centerpiece of the BJP’s campaign.

BJP wins a seat In Kerala for the first time

The southern state of Kerala has long been seen as a bastion of the left, but the BJP finally made inroads after Suresh Gopi won by a margin of 74,686 votes in the Thrissur constituency and became the BJP’s first Lok Sabha parliamentarian from Kerala. Experts say this might reflect Islamaphobic elements among the Christian communities in Kerala, where Hindus make up 55% of the state’s population, while Muslims and Christians make up 27% and 18% respectively.

Women voters prefer Modi

Indian women, who have become a formidable force in India’s voter turnout due to political knowledge, literacy, and media exposure. Traditionally, female voters were more inclined to vote for Congress, but in the last few elections, they have redirected their votes to the BJP. A pre-poll survey predicted that 46% of India's 472 million women voters would opt for the BJP-led alliance in the election. The reason: Modi’s welfare schemes, which have focused on women’s welfare—including cash handouts and domestic benefits like free cooking gas, piped water, and sanitation.

A Sikh separatist and Kashmir leader is elected from jail

Amritpal Singh, a 31-year-old Sikh separatist leader who was arrested last year after a month-long police manhunt in the state of Punjab, was elected a lawmaker after defeating 26 other candidates. Singh rose to prominence calling for a separate Sikh homeland known as Khalistan. Sheikh Abdul Rashid, another jailed leader from Indian-administered Kashmir in the disputed Himalayan region, won a seat by more than 200,000 votes. The former state legislator was arrested by the Modi government on charges of "terror funding" and money laundering in 2019.

 

Lithuanian Greens unveil landmark all-women list in EU election • FRANCE 24 English

 

In pioneering Lithuania, the first all-women list in the country’s political history has been unveiled. The Lithuanian Greens are hoping that this list will help more women get elected to the European parliament, where men still make up around 60 % of the institution. The candidates are also trying to draw attention to other gender issues, such as the pay gap.

#EuropeanElections #EuropeanUnion #EuropeanParliament

Crabs on cocaine: raw sewage threatens UK marine life | REUTERS

Cocaine and ecstasy are just some of the drugs and pharmaceuticals that have been found in marine species in coastal waters around Britain, according to scientists.

From refugee camps to World Cup glory: Inspiring journey of Afghanistan cricket

June 05, 2024 
By Jafar Haand
Matiullah Abid Noor

Afghanistan'’s Karim Sadiq dives to catch the ball while fielding during the Asia Cup one-day international cricket tournament against Pakistan in Fatullah, near Dhaka, Bangladesh, Feb. 27, 2014.

WASHINGTON —

When the parents of Karim Sadiq and Taj Maluk fled a wrecked Afghanistan torn apart by the 1979 Soviet invasion and infighting warlords, they didn’t imagine their children — Karim and Taj — would return to reunite the war-torn nation through cricket.

Taj Maluk became the first coach of the Afghan national team. Fans refer to him as one of the founding fathers of Afghan cricket. Younger brother Karim Sadiq played a key role in Afghanistan’s qualification in the World Cup in 2010, creating history for the cricket-loving nation of more than 40 million.

The brothers were brought up in a refugee camp called Katcha Garhi, in Peshawar, Pakistan. The family left a decent life in the eastern Nangarhar province to live in a sea of mud houses and poverty.

“Life was all struggle those days,” Karim Sadiq recalls. “Doing odd jobs in the night and playing cricket in the daytime. We used a stick as a bat, used to make plastic balls from plastic waste material.”

There was an old black-and-white TV set in their refugee camp where the young and elders watched international matches, including Pakistan winning the 1992 World Cup. These events had a huge influence on aspiring cricketers in Afghan refugee camps.

Afghan national cricket team coach, Taj Maluk, speaks to his team in Kabul, May 27, 2006.

The elder brother, Taj Maluk, searched for talent in refugee camps and founded the Afghan Cricket Club, which arguably laid the foundation of the future Afghanistan team.

Another Afghan cricketer, Allah Dad Noori, also played a key role by pioneering a path for cricket in Afghanistan.

Like the brothers, many international Afghan players, such as Mohammad Shehzad, Raees Ahmadzai, Mohammad Nabi, and the country’s first global star Rashid Khan, now captain, all grew up learning cricket and becoming cricketers in Peshawar, Pakistan.

Gujarat Titans' Rashid Khan plays a shot during the Indian Premier League cricket match between Delhi Capitals and Gujarat Titans in New Delhi, India, April 24, 2024.

“It was our passion. We didn't know then that Cricket would bring such happiness to the Afghan nation,” Karim Sadiq told VOA. “Cricket conveys a message that Afghanistan is not a country of war and drugs. It's a country of love and sports.”

In 2001, after the invasion of the U.S. forces against the Taliban rule, cricket flourished in Afghanistan, which became an associate member of the ICC, the world’s cricketing body.

A new younger generation of cricketers emerged. Now, Afghanistan is a full member of the ICC’s elite club of 12 countries, and it enjoys the status of a test-playing nation.

The Afghan team won many hearts in the 2023 World Cup after earning wins against the former world champions — Pakistan, England and Sri Lanka.

“Afghan players fight for every match as they are fighting for the nation,” Pakistan’s former captain, Rashid Latif, who coached Afghanistan, told VOA. “T20 cricket needs aggression and Afghanistan players have it. They are capable of surprises in the World Cup.”

Now, Afghanistan is playing in the T20 Cricket World Cup co-hosted by the United States and West Indies. It has strong contenders like New Zealand and West Indies in the group, along with minnows Papa New Guinea and Uganda. Some experts call it the “Group of Death” because only two teams will make it through the knockout stage.

A sign advertises the Cricket World Cup matches in East Meadow, New York, May 8, 2024.

The Taliban banned all women's sports and put restrictions on some men’s sports, but not cricket. There is speculation it’s because they enjoyed the game themselves or were apprehensive about the possible public reaction if they banned it, given its massive popularity.

A few weeks ago, when Afghanistan’s team captain, Rashid Khan, visited Afghanistan to meet family and friends, Taliban officials presented him with bouquets and took selfies with the superstar.

Rashid and his team members, including young superstars — batters Rehmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran, allrounder Azmatullah Omarzai, spinners Mujeeb-ur Rehman and Noor Ahmed — have arrived in the West Indies, as have their diehard supporters from Europe, Canada and the U.S.

Back in Afghanistan, Karim Sadiq is now working to promote the sport, while his elder brother, 49-year-old Taj Maluk, has turned to religion. “Cricket is not just a game. It reunites Afghans and brings joy to the lives of people,” Taj Maluk told VOA. “We will pray for their success.”

Karim Sadiq recalls when Afghanistan qualified for the T20 World Cup in 2010. “When we returned home, it was a festival. Everywhere, celebrating crowds held up the Afghan flag. We all wish to see such festivity again, to see Afghanistan become the World Champion.”

Across Afghanistan, fans have made special arrangements to view the matches. Some have pooled their money to buy dish antennas. Others have decorated the hujras, or living rooms, with national flags.

“Afghanistan is a wounded land. Cricket helps people stitch those wounds,“ said Shams ul Rahman Shirzad, a cricket fan in Nangarhar, from where the brothers Taj Maluk and Karim Sadiq hailed and once dreamed of having a national cricket team.

This story originated in VOA’s Afghan service.

Johannesburg: The Evolving Face of Chinatown and South African Chinese

South Africa has seen several waves of immigration from China, with early generations of migrants fleeing extreme poverty at home and newer arrivals seeking business opportunities. Kate Bartlett has the story about Chinese South Africans who have established businesses Johannesburg’s old and new Chinatowns.

Study finds US Islamist extremist co-offenders form close-knit groups driven by mutual contacts, homophily effects

by Public Library of Science

US Islamist co-offending network. Note: isolated nodes are excluded. The network includes

 only individuals who had at least one co-offending relationship. 

Credit: Schwarzenbach, Jensen, 2024, PLOS ONE, CC-BY 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

The formation of relationships within violent US Islamist extremist groups is highly driven by mutual contacts and the tendency for people to bond with others similar to themselves, according to new research.

Anina Schwarzenbach, formally of Harvard University and the University of Maryland (currently affiliated with the University of Bern) and Michael Jensen of the University of Maryland present these findings in the open-access journal PLOS ONE on June 5, 2024.

Prior research on social structures within extremist networks has primarily explored outcomes, such as insurgency or conflict, with scant focus on how relationships first arise. The few studies on relationship formation have suggested that, unlike groups that are mostly profit-driven, terrorist groups prioritize trust-based relationships that increase security over those boosting efficiency.

Building on that prior work, Schwarzenbach and Jensen analyzed how trust-based co-offending relationships—relationships between extremists who commit ideologically motivated crimes either together or separately after receiving each other's influence—form within networks of Islamic extremists radicalized within the United States.

They analyzed data from the publicly accessible Social Networks of American Radicals (SoNAR) database, which includes court-record data on relationships between US Islamist offenders.

The researchers first applied algorithms for detecting community structures to SoNAR data, revealing that the US Islamist co-offending network consists mostly of small, separate, close-knit community clusters, with only a few larger communities.

Next, they applied a technique called exponential random graph modeling to SoNAR data to examine the potential roles of homophily—a tendency to bond with similar people—and transitivity—connection through mutual contacts—in the formation of these co-offender relationships.

They found that relationships were shaped by mutual contacts, ideological affiliation, spatial proximity, and shared socio-cultural traits, suggesting that both homophily and transitivity help to drive co-offending relationships among US Islamist extremists.

The authors note several limitations to this work, including that their findings may not be generalizable outside of the US or to other kinds of extremist offenders.

Still, they say, the findings point to several avenues for disrupting terrorist networks and preventing violence, such as the importance of engagement-prevention programs and policing techniques that are informed by the local—as opposed to online— context in which trust-based co-offending relationships typically form.

The authors add, "The results underscore the significance of local connections and personal interaction in the mobilization of extremist activities. They suggest that combating terrorism requires a multifaceted and localized approach, combining efforts in the digital area with traditional police work at a local level."

More information: Extremists of a feather flock together? Community structures, transitivity, and patterns of homophily in the US Islamist co-offending network, PLoS ONE (2024). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0298273

Journal information: PLoS ONE 

Provided by Public Library of Science Study of convicted extremists shows open social media platforms play an increasing role in radicalisation

 

Study finds simple headlines attract more online news readers

by Michigan State University

Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

The competition for online attention in today's news environment is fierce. High-quality news from credible sources must compete for attention with misinformation and a rapidly increasing amount of partisan content.

How can a news organization stand out as a reputable and trustworthy outlet while driving readers to its site?

The answer is simple: literally.

According to research from Michigan State University, news readers engage more with simple writing, suggesting journalists should write simply—clearly and without ambiguity—to attract attention online. The study was published in the journal Science Advances.

"Newsrooms want engagement, and citizens, in general, want to be informed. Simple writing provides both. It can help news outlets compete in the competitive online attention economy and makes news more approachable to online readers," said David Markowitz, associate professor of communication in the MSU College of Communication Arts and Sciences.

Markowitz and his colleagues on the study, Hillary Shulman, associate professor of communication at Ohio State University, and Todd Rogers, professor of public policy at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government, evaluated over 30,000 field experiments assessing how headlines from the Washington Post and Upworthy impacted how often people clicked on stories. To do this, they developed a simplicity index, which evaluated headlines based on the following criteria:

• Common words, including simple nouns and verbs.
• Readability, reflecting the number of words per sentence and syllables per word.
• Analytic writing, which describes how much a text reflects a story. Texts that score high in analytic writing tend to be more formal and complex.
• Character count, or the raw number of characters per headline.

Data from these experiments found that people engage with and click on linguistically simple headlines more than linguistically complex headlines.

"Simplicity is often preferred linguistically because it feels better than complexity to most people," said Markowitz. "It can impact what people read, what people click on, and how they think about companies and institutions competing for our attention."

"The best way to increase demand for good, credible journalism is to realize that simpler is better," Shulman said.

The researchers also found that complex headlines had less stickiness than simple headlines: readers were less likely to recognize or remember them later, as demonstrated in online experiments.

"Small efforts aimed at increasing the simplicity or fluency of language can increase the attention of casual readers—and also make them more informed and educated about the news of the day," said Markowitz.

And getting the simplicity right can make a significant difference. For example, during the time of the study, the Washington Post had about 70 million unique visitors to its website—that is, readers who did not visit the site twice. If only 0.10% more readers click on a story because it has a simpler headline (2.1% versus 2%) and end up reading three articles on the Washington Post website, that would still equal a difference of more than 200,000 readers.

"This not only makes the news accessible to more people, but it can also help newsrooms with their bottom line. More visitors means ad buyers are more attracted to a publication, which helps a news organization's bottom line," said Markowitz.

More information: Hillary Shulman, Reading Dies in Complexity: Online News Consumers Prefer Simple Writing, Science Advances (2024). DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adn2555. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adn2555

Journal information: Science Advances 

Provided by Michigan State University New research shows how attention lapses are exploited by fake news sites

Gay Brit says Qatari cops lured him on Grindr before falsely arresting him for drugs

The man went to a date's apartment as cops claimed to have found meth in his possession.

By Greg Owen Wednesday, June 5, 2024


Manuel Guerrero Aviña, right, and his brother BenjaminPhoto: Amnesty International


A Mexican-British national living in the Middle Eastern country of Qatar has been convicted of drug possession after police lured him to a date’s apartment using a fake Grindr profile, his family says.

Manuel Guerrero Aviña, 44, was given a suspended six-month prison term and a fine at Al Sadd Criminal Court in the capital city of Doha on Wednesday.

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British/Mexican man arrested for being gay in Qatar is being denied HIV medications

He says police entrapped him and are now psychologically torturing him.

The former Qatar Airways employee is currently under a travel ban, which will continue if he decides to appeal. If he accepts the charges and pays the fine, he’ll be deported.

Qatari authorities detained the 44-year-old without charge in February 2024. Authorities held him for over six weeks, during which time he says he was denied food and water for 15 hours at a time and was abused based on his sexual orientation and his HIV-positive status.

During interrogations, Guerrero Aviña says he was threatened with whipping and forced to identify sexual partners in his phone address book. He was denied HIV medication for the duration of his detention, he said.

“Guerrero Aviña’s treatment in custody and his unfair trial was utterly horrific,” said Aya Majzoub, Deputy Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International.

“Instead of convicting people after unfair proceedings, Qatar’s authorities must urgently end the discrimination and persecution of people based on their sexual orientation and gender identities and repeal all laws that discriminate against LGBTI people,” Majzoub added.

Qatari authorities deny Guerrero Aviña was persecuted for being gay, and maintain that his detention and trial were based solely on drug possession on his person which was discovered by investigators at his apartment while he was detained at another location.

“Mr Aviña’s arrest and the subsequent investigation are related solely to the possession of illegal substances with the intent to supply,” a Qatari official told Amnesty International in March.

According to his case file, Qatari authorities informed Guerrero Aviña they had found traces of crystal methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia in their search of his apartment.

Guerrero Aviña denies using or possessing illegal drugs and maintains they were planted by law enforcement officials.

“This case has been a travesty of justice,” said James Lynch, co-director of Gulf-based human rights group FairSquare. “Following his conviction, the British government has a responsibility to make urgent representations to the Qatari government about the deeply unfair and discriminatory process their citizen has been subjected to. They must also press the Qatari authorities to stop the persecution of people based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.”

Police in several Middle East countries routinely use fake dating app profiles to entrap and arrest LGBTQ+ people, according to Human Rights Watch.

In 2022, Amnesty International reported that security officials arbitrarily arrested, tortured, and otherwise ill-treated six people in Qatar for their sexual orientation. Six cases of severe and repeated beatings and five cases of sexual harassment in police custody were reported by Human Rights Watch between 2019 and 2022.

Lawsuit Claims Meta Censored Pro-Palestinian Content

Published Jun 05, 2024 
By Suzanne Blake
Reporter, Consumer & Social Trends


Anew lawsuit alleges that Meta purposefully hid pro-Palestinian content on its social media platforms.

A former Meta engineer accused the owner of Facebook and Instagram of censoring Palestinian Instagram posts in a lawsuit that also accuses the company of wrongful termination and discrimination.

Ferras Hamad, a Palestinian-American engineer who filed the suit, started working on Meta's machine learning team in 2021. But after being fired in February, Hamad said Meta deleted internal communications between workers about the deaths of their family members in Gaza.
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee at the Dirksen Senate Office Building on January 31 in Washington, D.C. Meta has been accused of censoring pro-Palestinian content in a new lawsuit.... More ANNA MONEYMAKER/GETTY IMAGES


Meta is also accused of starting investigations into the use of the Palestinian flag emoji by employees but did not do the same for Israeli or Ukrainian flags, the lawsuit alleges.

The Hamas militant group attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking more than 200 hostages. Israel then launched its largest-ever airstrikes in Gaza, where more than 36,000 people have been killed, local health officials said.

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HR consultant Bryan Driscoll went as far as calling the action by Meta "reprehensible" but not shocking, given the company's track record on content moderation and bias, he said.

"The lawsuit alleges Meta fired a former engineer for raising concerns about the company suppressing pro-Palestinian content on Instagram," Driscoll told Newsweek. "If true, it has profound ramifications, both for Meta's credibility, which people don't seem to care about, and for broader issues of free speech and censorship in tech."


Driscoll said the suppression of any political content, especially related to the war in Gaza, highlights the power and responsibility tech giants wield over public discourse.

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"Meta will likely face significant pressure to respond transparently...and then people will forget," Driscoll said. "Meta will continue to resist content moderation of any meaningful impact. The company's primary focus is profit and maintaining market dominance. These legal battles are just bumps in the road for them."

Since the average social media user is unaware of the intricacies behind content moderation and how biases play into it, Meta is unlikely to be impacted in the long term. Still, Meta could face financial consequences and a short-term blow to its public image, Driscoll said.

"The perception of bias in content moderation can lead to a loss of user trust, but let's be honest, Facebook and Instagram diehards aren't going anywhere."

Meta previously launched an investigation in 2021 looking into the content it allows on its platforms related to Israel and the Palestinians.

"Meta seems to have been caught in censorship crossfire," Arun C. Kumar, the former chief data and marketing technology officer for Interpublic and the author of The Data Deluge: Making Marketing Work for Brands and People, told Newsweek.

"The key driver here is that Meta has designated Hamas as a terrorist organization. Therefore, all associated images and symbols of Hamas will be recognized as such by any algorithm. If a user shows a Palestinian flag on a post and Hamas has used Palestinian flags in its posts, then the algorithm will suppress the content. It's just the way AI works."

In Hamad's lawsuit, the company said it fired him based on breaking rules centered around working on content from creators an employee knows personally. But Hamad said he brought up the censorship of Palestinian content on Instagram, showing the company instances in which the pro-Palestinian posts were classified as pornographic.

The next month, Hamad received notice he was under investigation, and he submitted an internal discrimination complaint. Just days after, he was terminated.

The official reason was breaking a rule against employees working on issues with accounts of people they know in real life, but Hamad said he had no personal ties to the Palestinian photojournalist he brought up the censorship concerns over.

"The employee was dismissed for violating Meta's data access policies, which we make clear to employees will result in immediate termination." a Meta spokesperson told Newsweek.

Kumar said the widespread concerns over Meta's Palestinian content policy stems from how the company has flagged Hamas as terrorists.

"Meta is getting criticized for not suppressing Israeli or Ukrainian content," Kumar said. "An algorithm wouldn't ban them because they have not been associated or tagged with terrorist organizations. The question really is whether Meta should tag Israeli flags in the same way that it tags Palestinian flags."

Meta has withstood similar accusations. Roughly 200 employees wrote in a letter to company CEO Mark Zuckerberg about their concerns of censorship.


Update 6/5/24, 4:57 p.m. ET: This story was updated with comment from a Meta spokesperson.