"Nazis," Bias, and Social Media

Today, we saw a lesson in social media. This morning if you searched “California Republicans” on Google, you saw a summary screenshot of “ideologies” for the California Republican Party with the first listed as “Nazism.”

While officially Google refers you to their “Feedback” button to report a concern, the reality is this was only changed due to pressure from right-of-center social media groups and Republican leaders such as House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy:

Dear @Google,
This is a disgrace ⬇️ #StopTheBias pic.twitter.com/8EZhtOLcOD

— Kevin McCarthy (@GOPLeader) May 31, 2018

Sadly, this is just the latest incident in a disturbing trend to slander conservatives. These damaging actions must be held to account. #StopTheBias https://t.co/6ztyuc772s

— Kevin McCarthy (@GOPLeader) May 31, 2018

RNLA Vice President for Communications and RNC Committeewoman Harmeet Dhillon flagged this on her Facebook page and RNLA helped let the “movement” know about this problem early this morning. It spread fast and Google removed the offensive section and instead tried to cast the blame on Wikipedia.

The fact of the matter is that although--subject to pressure--Google “fixed” the problem as of 5:00 p.m. Eastern, “California Democrats” have an ideology listing while “California Republicans” do not.

What makes this all more troubling is the proximity to the California primary. Coupled with Facebook’s refusal to verify Republican candidates such as California Secretary of State candidate Mark Meuser, the bias of the Silicon Valley social media giants remains concerning. As we saw today, the solution is, at least in part, to fight back.