A new anti-extremism alert on Facebook is creating concerns about limiting free speech, according to The New York Post.
Screenshots shared on Twitter showed a notice asking "Are you concerned that someone you know is becoming an extremist?" and another that alerted users "you may have been exposed to harmful extremist content recently." Both included links to "get support."
Facebook spokesperson Andy Stone confirmed that the social media giant is testing the prompts as part of greater radicalization prevention.
Republican Virginia House of Delegates member Nick Freitas tweeted about the alerts, calling it an "Orwellian environment."
Several other conservative commentators have spoken up against the warnings. Writer and commentator Alex Berenson also tweeted about the situation.
Yeah, I’m becoming an extremist. An anti-@Facebook extremist. “Confidential help is available?” Who do they think they are?Either they’re a publisher and a political platform legally liable for every bit of content they host, or they need to STAY OUT OF THE WAY. Zuck’s choice. pic.twitter.com/AImMAcnPAv
— Alex Berenson (@AlexBerenson) July 1, 2021
In the past, Facebook has dealt with an antisemitism problem.
Several groups with roughly a thousand members each have popped up, according to the ADL, each espousing Holocaust denial.
"Despite years of requests to address antisemitism, Facebook has failed to take sufficient action against posts, groups and users that promote antisemitism in clear contravention of the company’s community standards," the letter said. "Facebook’s inaction has helped spread hatred of Jews and has contributed to historical[ly] high levels of antisemitism in America and antisemitism online and offline across the globe."