Director, Commonwealth Policy Center

Conservatives have been complaining that Facebook is boxing them out. The latest example comes from Dr. Robert A.J. Gagnon, a New Testament professor at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. Gagnon criticized a pro-LGBT video targeting young children.  Gagnon said “This clip is about celebrating sexual perversity, not ‘sexual diversity.'” For that he was put on a 24-hour ban for violating Facebook's “community standards on hate speech.” Facebook also hid the post from view and warned him that if he continued, he could face longer suspensions, possibly permanently banned. Facebook has every right to make its own policies. But it fails to grasp that strong differences of opinion don't amount to hate. And so long as it shuts out conservative speech, it may just well end up as a left-leaning echo chamber.