{"id":2357754,"date":"2024-10-21T22:31:52","date_gmt":"2024-10-22T02:31:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/facebook-banned-the-western-journal-publisher-without-warning-disabling-key-publishing-functions-weeks-before-election\/"},"modified":"2024-10-21T22:34:29","modified_gmt":"2024-10-22T02:34:29","slug":"facebook-banned-the-western-journal-publisher-without-warning-disabling-key-publishing-functions-weeks-before-election","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/facebook-banned-the-western-journal-publisher-without-warning-disabling-key-publishing-functions-weeks-before-election\/","title":{"rendered":"Facebook Banned The Western Journal Publisher Without Warning, Disabling Key Publishing Functions Weeks Before Election"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">30<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ffacebook-banned-the-western-journal-publisher-without-warning-disabling-key-publishing-functions-weeks-before-election%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2357754&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The \u200barticle discusses the sudden banning of Patrick Brown, the\u2063 publisher of The\u200b Western Journal, from Facebook without\u2064 prior warning. This ban halted \u2062key publishing functions for the website just weeks before the \u2063November 5 presidential \u2063election. While Brown&#8217;s account\u200b was restored four\u200d hours later, no explanation was provided regarding\u200b the ban. Similarly, retired U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Michael\u200d Flynn&#8217;s account was\u2062 also disabled shortly after, prompting claims of election interference from \u200bconservative figures. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/illegal-immigrant-detained-as-person-of-interest-in-rape-of-13-year-old-girl-at-park\/\" title=\"Undocumented Immigrant Held as Suspect in Assault of Teen at Park\">article highlights concerns<\/a> \u2063over increased\u2062 censorship of conservative accounts on social media platforms leading up to the election. It \u2062concludes with reports of other \u200c<a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">users experiencing similar sudden bans<\/a>, emphasizing\u2063 a growing unease within conservative circles regarding freedom of speech and perceived bias from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ga-poll-watcher-it-expert-non-trump-supporter-affidavit-sudden-surge-of-20000-mail-in-votes-for-biden-in-early-hours-on-nov\/\" title=\"GA Poll Watcher, IT Expert, Non-Trump Supporter Affidavit: Sudden Surge of 20,000 Mail-In-Votes For Biden In Early Hours On Nov\">social media companies<\/a>.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> <script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_0)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_2)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>The Western Journal Publisher and Owner Patrick Brown was banned from without warning Monday.<\/p>\n<p>Brown didn&rsquo;t regularly post anything to his account but did use it to operate The Western Journal&rsquo;s main page, along with numerous other affiliated pages.<\/p>\n<p>When the ban went into effect, key publishing functions for The Western Journal tied to Brown&rsquo;s account were instantly deactivated.<\/p>\n<p>All of The Western Journal&rsquo;s pages stopped posting until those publishing functions could be migrated to another account.<\/p>\n<p>As a result, The Western Journal&rsquo;s reach was directly impacted just 15 days before <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/trump-incredible-weekend-surges-lead-first-time-multiple-major-election-forecasts\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">the Nov. 5 presidential election<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>Roughly four hours later, Brown&rsquo;s account appeared to have been restored, though has yet to issue any explanation for why it was banned in the first place.<\/p>\n<p>This is not the only unexplained ban of a conservative account to take place only weeks before Election Day.<\/p>\n<p>The account of retired U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/author\/mflynn\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">a frequent contributor to The Western Journal<\/a>, was also disabled Thursday.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Screw and its election interference and censorship agenda.<\/p>\n<p>&#8294;<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/elonmusk?\">@elonmusk<\/a>&#8297; thank you for allowing us to maintain our freedom of speech! <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/fflJGofjXu\">pic.twitter.com\/fflJGofjXu<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; General Mike Flynn (@GenFlynn) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/GenFlynn\/status\/1848011834768474459?\">October 20, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Gen. Flynn sent The Western Journal exclusive comments responding to the ban.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Facebook, without warning, and just prior to the most <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gen-flynn-responds-to-facebook-ban-just-before-election-day-election-interference-of-the-highest-form\/\" title=\"Gen. Flynn Responds to Facebook Ban Just Before Election Day: &#039;Election Interference of the Highest Form&#039;\">historically consequential presidential election<\/a> in U.S. History, blatantly and intentionally censored me from their platform,&rdquo; Flynn wrote. &ldquo;This is election interference of the highest form and absolutely demonstrates once again the lies spewed by the totalitarian regime running FB of their strong desire to keep President Donald J. Trump from serving as our 47th President.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This behavior cannot stand in a free, open and transparent society where our freedom of speech is at severe risk and the FB tyrants prove once again how they are anti-free speech and how they continue to meddle in US elections.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Meta, Facebook&rsquo;s parent company, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.axios.com\/2024\/07\/12\/trump-meta-facebook-instagram-account-restrictions-election\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">previously claimed<\/a> it was trying to stay out of election-related censorship back in July.<\/p>\n<p>In addition, during an Aug. 27 interview with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/tech\/mark-zuckerberg-neutral-politics-letter-election-2024-02b86372\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Wall Street Journal<\/a>, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg went as far as to claim the Biden administration was wrong to pressure the company to censor content in 2021.<\/p>\n<p>Nonetheless, the platform is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-promises-lower-gas-prices-after-emergency-reserve-release-suggests-up-to-35-cents-lower\/\" title=\"Biden Promises Lower Gas Prices After Emergency Reserve Release, Suggests \u2018Up To 35 Cents\u2019 Lower\">facing increasing pressure<\/a> from the media and election officials to silence so-called &ldquo;misinformation&rdquo; going into Election Day.<\/p>\n<p>For example, a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2024\/09\/26\/facebooks-misinformation-problem-has-local-election-officials-on-edge.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">CNBC<\/a> report published in late September cited various election officials lamenting how &ldquo;misinformation&rdquo; was &ldquo;running rampant&rdquo; on the platform.<\/p>\n<p>Though it remains unclear whether or not has ramped up its censorship efforts, there are numerous reports of conservative accounts being banned.<\/p>\n<p>In recent days, many X users have claimed their accounts were banned without warning in the very same manner as both Brown and Flynn.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">are complete Nazis!! They disabled my and instagram with no warning saying I broke community guidelines! Didn&rsquo;t post anything bad. But truth!<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Jason Christley (@Jason_Christley) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Jason_Christley\/status\/1848500660292997430?\">October 21, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;are complete Nazis!! They disabled my and instagram with no warning saying I broke community guidelines! Didn&rsquo;t post anything bad. But truth!&rdquo; one conservative X user wrote on Monday.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">My account has just been disabled, without explanation, without warning, and without any information about how to appeal or learn why.<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/facebook?\">@Facebook<\/a> WHAT IS GOING ON???<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Kerry Daly (@scragsma70) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/scragsma70\/status\/1848455101331186039?\">October 21, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;My account has just been disabled, without explanation, without warning, and without any information about how to appeal or learn why.@WHAT IS GOING ON???,&rdquo; another conservative posted Monday.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Good morning my beautiful X family. Well, with NO reason or explanation &hellip; disabled my account overnight. Imagine that&hellip;. 2 weeks from the biggest election in our lifetime!&rdquo; another <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/PISDI94_96\/status\/1847617978956652839\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">wrote<\/a>&nbsp;Saturday.<\/p>\n<p>The Western Journal reached out to for comment regarding the ban, as well as its censoring of conservatives and conservative organizations heading into Election Day.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/hunter-submits-deer-photo-facebook-whitetail-page-within-10-minutes-way-losing-hunting-license\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Facebook<\/a> has yet to issue any sort of explanation or response.<\/p>\n<p>If your &mdash; or any Meta account &mdash; has been banned please reach out to The Western Journal <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/contact-us\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\">  <\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> <label>* Name<\/label> <br \/> <input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> <\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> <label>* <\/label> <br \/> <input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> <\/div>\n<p> <label>* Message<\/label> <br \/> <textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea>  <\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> <input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\">  <\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> <script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script>  <\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> <\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\">  <\/div>\n<style> \t\t\t \t\t\t.insticator-unit.type-commenting{margin: 0 10px 25px 10px}@media screen and (max-width:1060px){#div-insticator-ad-cmt-1, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-2, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-3, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-4{margin: 0 auto 25px auto !important;}}#div-insticator-ad-cmt-1, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-2, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-3, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-4{height: 280px !important; width: 336px !important} \t\t<\/style>\n<div class=\"insticator-unit type-commenting\">\n<div class=\"insticator-ads\">   <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\t\t\tif ( ! getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-1\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-2\"); \t\t\t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-1\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-2\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t<\/script> <\/div>\n<div class=\"insticator-ads additional\">   <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\t\t\tif ( ! getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-3\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-4\"); \t\t\t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-3\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-4\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t<\/script> <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Patrick Brown, the publisher and owner of The Western Journal, was unexpectedly banned on Monday. Although he didn&#8217;t frequently post on his account, he managed The Western Journal&#8217;s main page and several affiliated pages through it. Once the ban was enacted, essential publishing capabilities linked to Brown&#8217;s account were immediately disabled, halting all posts from The Western Journal until those functions could be transferred to a different account. This disruption occurred just 15 days before the presidential election on November 5.<\/p>\n<p>Approximately four hours later, Brown&#8217;s account seemed to be restored; however, no explanation for the initial ban has been provided. This incident is not isolated; another conservative figure, retired U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn\u2014who often contributes to The Western Journal\u2014also had his account disabled shortly thereafter.<\/p>\n<p>Flynn expressed his concerns about censorship in a statement: &#8220;Facebook has blatantly censored me without warning right before a crucial presidential election,&#8221; he said, labeling it as significant election interference aimed at preventing Donald Trump from becoming President again.<\/p>\n<p>Despite Meta (Facebook\u2019s parent company) previously asserting its intention to avoid involvement in election-related censorship back in July and CEO Mark Zuckerberg claiming that pressure from the Biden administration to censor content was misguided during an August interview with The Wall Street Journal, there are growing calls for action against what is deemed &#8220;misinformation&#8221; as Election Day approaches.<\/p>\n<p>Reports indicate that numerous conservative accounts have faced similar bans recently without prior notice or clear reasons given for their suspension. Many users have taken to social media expressing frustration over sudden bans and lack of communication regarding appeals or explanations for their disabled accounts.<\/p>\n<p>The Western Journal has sought comments regarding these incidents but has yet to receive any response from Facebook concerning these actions against conservative voices leading up to the elections<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2357755,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/FACEBOOK-.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[6371,4573,8621,43474],"class_list":["post-2357754","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-censorship","tag-facebook","tag-publisher","tag-western-journal"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/FACEBOOK-.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2357754","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2357754"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2357754\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2357755"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2357754"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2357754"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2357754"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}