Facebook: 99.9999% Drop in PragerU Traffic an ‘Error’

Social media giant Facebook has apologized to conservative non-profit group PragerU for banning multiple videos on the group’s Facebook page for “hate speech,” and the subsequent shadowbanning of the group’s page, which resulted in a 99.9999% drop in traffic.

Breitbart News previously reported on the censorship of PragerU after their Facebook page saw a 99.9999 percent drop in engagement based on Facebook’s own dashboard. The Social Media Masters of the Universe also pulled down two PragerU videos, including one on masculinity, which it labeled “hate speech.”

PragerU CMO Craig Strazzeri stated:

This is a first for us. While we’ve experienced blatant discrimination from Google/YouTube, which is why we’ve filed legal action against them, this represents a whole new level of censorship by Facebook. At this point, Facebook has provided little clarity saying it will get back to us in another two to three business days, which in the world of social media might as well be an eternity.

This is very troubling behavior from the world’s largest social network. Not only are they obviously ratcheting up their algorithms to target mainstream, conservative content and labeling it as hate speech, but they are now completely blocking our posts from public view. This is shocking and it should deeply concern every single American.

Since then, Facebook has apologized to PragerU, stating that the removal of videos was an error. A Facebook spokesperson said in a statement: “The videos in question were mistakenly removed. While we continue to research what caused this error, we have restored the content because it does not break our Community Standards and apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.”

PragerU posted to Facebook about the video removal questioning whether or not the act was, in fact, a “mistake,” and called it a “deliberate censorship of conservative ideas.”

Breitbart News will continue to monitor PragerU’s Facebook page to determine if traffic does return to normal levels, or if the social media Masters of the Universe will pursue an extended campaign against the group, as YouTube has.

Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship. Follow him on Twitter @LucasNolan_ or email him at lnolan@breitbart.com