Google prevented the conservative Claremont Institute from using Google ads to promote its 40th-anniversary gala after the think tank’s president penned an article for its publication, the American Mind, criticizing multiculturalism, only reversing the decision following backlash from conservatives.
In his op-ed, Claremont Institute president Ryan P. Williams wrote that multiculturalism poses “an existential threat to the American political order” due to its rejection of the principle of assimilation and shared culture.
“The modern multiculturalist Left is intent on proliferating divisions without concern for American unity, cohesion, and stability” wrote Williams, who used his column to highlight the destabilizing impact that multiculturalism is having on education, business, politics, and other areas of American society.
Following the publication of the article, Google refused to let the Claremont Institute use its ad services to promote its upcoming 40th-anniversary gala.
Following backlash from conservative media organizations and social media influencers, Google’s acting director of political outreach contacted the Claremont Institute to inform it that the decision to suspend ad services to the think tank was a mistake and had been reversed.
According to the Federalist, the Claremont Institute had mistakenly been labeled a “racially or ethnically motivated publication” by Google, which prevented it from purchasing ads. This label has since been removed.
It’s not the first “mistake” that has led a big tech platform to suppress conservatives or deny them service. In March, Facebook “mistakenly” categorized Trump social media director Dan Scavino as a bot.
“It’s always an “accident!'” wrote the president’s son, Donald Trump Jr. at the time, who has become a vocal critic of big tech. “The accidents are always only one way and happen so frequently that unless the people designing the algorithms are total incompetents it’s pure and simple bias.”
It’s always an “accident!” The accidents are always only one way and happen so frequently that unless the people designing the algorithms are total incompetents it’s pure and simple bias and conservative censorship.
It’s time to stop this BS. https://t.co/B369jz8ykQ— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) March 20, 2019
Other acts of censorship by big tech companies explained away as “accidents” include Google-owned YouTube’s now-reversed ban on conservative star Hunter Avallone, and Facebook’s now-reversed ban of former Breitbart London editor-in-chief Raheem Kassam.
Despite its claim that the suspension of service to the Claremont Institute was an accident, exclusive reports by Breitbart News have confirmed that Google is under constant internal pressure to deny ad service to conservative organizations and individuals.
Allum Bokhari is the senior technology correspondent at Breitbart News. You can follow him on Twitter, Gab.ai and add him on Facebook. Email tips and suggestions to allumbokhari@protonmail.com.
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