Facebook Defends Decision to Leave Fake Nancy Pelosi Video Up, Because of Course They Do

By now, everyone who has seen or heard of the widely circulated video that made House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) seem intoxicated knows that it is fake. YouTube took down uploads of the video, a call which seemed like a no-brainer to most. Suggested Reading Post #3 6-18-2025 Post #2 6-18-2025 Post #1 6-16-2025 Video…

By now, everyone who has seen or heard of the widely circulated video that made House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) seem intoxicated knows that it is fake. YouTube took down uploads of the video, a call which seemed like a no-brainer to most.

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Stefon Diggs and Cardi B Viral Boat Video Prompts Response from Patriots Coach
Stefon Diggs and Cardi B Viral Boat Video Prompts Response from Patriots Coach

Facebook has yet to follow suit, according to the Washington Post. Acknowledging the video as โ€œfalse,โ€ this generationโ€™s Standard Oil said the video would remain on the platform.

With more than 2.5 million views for the video by Friday, vice president for product policy and counterterrorism Monika Bickert said the company โ€œdramaticallyโ€ reduced the videoโ€™s distribution without removing it.

โ€œWe think itโ€™s important for people to make their own informed choice for what to believe,โ€ she said during an interview with CNNโ€™s Anderson Cooper. โ€œOur job is to make sure we are getting them accurate information,โ€ she added.

Cooper, whose black-framed spectacles accentuated a mild disgust, wasnโ€™t having it.

โ€œYouโ€™re making money by being in the news business,โ€ he said. โ€œIf you canโ€™t do it well, shouldnโ€™t you just get out of the news business?โ€

https://twitter.com/AC360/status/1132085840778153984?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

We arenโ€™t in the news business. Weโ€™re in the social media business,โ€ Bickert replied.

โ€œThe reason youโ€™re sharing news is because you make money from it.,โ€ Cooper replied. โ€œBut if youโ€™re in the news business, which you are, then you have to do it right. And this is false information you are spreading.โ€

Bickert told Cooper the video is now tagged with fact-checker icons beneath the post, though icons often get lost in the shuffle or misinterpreted as related content or advertisements that users easily overlook, which is something youโ€™d think the worldโ€™s most powerful media outlet would know.

Saturday morning, Facebookโ€™s bandaid had done little. According to screenshots from the Post, one user wondered โ€œWhy is she not arrested for being drunk while conducting federal business as a federal employee!โ€ and an expanded link for the video, which has more than 48,000 shares, showed no fact-checker warnings.

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