Online censorship is a growing problem.
The public square is largely digital today, so Big Tech platforms wield significant power.
And Facebook is silencing users for a reason too absurd to believe.
Pop singer Lizzo is supposedly being protected by the powers that be at Facebook.
Lizzo, whose real name is Melissa Viviane Jefferson, was supposedly “fat-shamed” on social media, which led to a tearful breakdown.
And censors at the company purportedly removed negative comments from her page.
TMZ reports:
“Facebook is stepping in to scrub hateful comments directed at Lizzo from its social media platforms . . . and some trolls are even getting their accounts removed. Sources at Facebook tell TMZ . . . the company’s already removed a number of comments left on Lizzo’s recent Facebook and Instagram posts, and FB will continue reviewing reports of hateful comments on an ongoing basis. As we reported . . . Lizzo broke down on video over the weekend, crying over being the subject of fat-shaming and racist comments.”
Online personal attacks are shameful, but unfortunately that’s the cost of being a public figure.
Republicans are treated savagely not only by anonymous users online, but by the so-called “mainstream” media.
Sarah Huckabee Sanders was essentially called fat to her face, and Tim Scott and other black conservatives who spoke at the Republican National Convention were called a “minstrel show.”
Perhaps compounding the attacks on Lizzo is the fact that she is a big proponent of the body positivity movement and has posed for glamour shots in bathing suits and lingerie.
Lizzo recently collaborated on a song with rapper Cardi B, who came to her defense:
When you stand up for yourself they claim your problematic & sensitive.When you don’t they tear you apart until you crying like this. Whether you skinny,big,plastic, they going to always try to put their insecurities on you.Remember these are nerds looking at the popular table. https://t.co/jE5eJw8XP6
— iamcardib (@iamcardib) August 15, 2021
Ironically, Cardi B has engaged in her own online slander, levying scurrilous charges against conservative commentator Candace Owens.
Harassment against Lizzo or any other public figure is regrettable, but there’s a clear double standard on who gets protected and who doesn’t.
Stay tuned to Unmuzzled News for any updates to this ongoing story.
