Daily Beast Says Facebook Helped Them Dox Trump Supporter

The Daily Beast recently doxed a black forklift driver and reported Trump supporter for the alleged high crime of creating a parody video of Democrat speaker of the house Nancy Pelosi. But there’s more to the story — it appears Facebook may have helped the left-wing journalists identify him.

The Daily Beast identified the video creator as Shawn Brooks, whom they described as a forklift driver and Trump supporter from the Bronx.

A Twitter account claiming to be Brooks disputed key details of the story, claiming he is not a Trump supporter, did not create the parody video, and does not live in the Bronx.

By doxing Brooks, The Daily Beast followed the example of CNN, which threatened to unmask an anonymous Trump supporter over a parody video, forcing to him apologize in exchange for not revealing his identity. The scandal caused “CNNBlackmail” to trend on Twitter.

But there’s another aspect to the Daily Beast story which has major implications for the privacy of Facebook users — according to the Daily Beast reporter himself, Facebook gave him information on Brooks’ activity on the platform.

Karen Bass meets with Trump at White House to push for LA wildfire relief after months of clashes

Manhattan DA’s office employee charged with sexual abuse after alleged incident on Queens subway

Florida prisoner laughs as judge sentences him to life for killing cellmate with pen: ‘You are amusing’

Florida man’s execution date set for killing 2, including small child

Senate GOP launches all-night vote-a-rama to fund ICE, Border Patrol through end of Trump’s term

Ilhan Omar Rages at Reporter Who Confronted Her About Financial Disclosure: ‘You’re Stupid’

Five things to know about Maine Senate hopeful Graham Platner

Judge Slams the Brakes on Democrats’ Virginia Redistricting, Rules Every Vote ‘Ineffective’

Video exposes disrepair lurking beneath Trump Kennedy Center as $257M renovation looms

‘Come On!’: Maury Povich Dismantles Joy Reid’s Absurd Claim That Dems Don’t ‘Play Politics’

Obama’s Shameless Hypocrisy Exposed as He Celebrates Democrats’ Virginia Power Grab

You Don’t Distrust Legacy Media Enough: Major Paper Shrugs at SPLC Paying Extremists – ‘FBI Does It Too’

Navy Secretary Fired ‘Effective Immediately’

Mexican national convicted of illegally voting in US after false citizenship claims faces removal: DHS

DC pipe bomb suspect pleads not guilty to terrorism and WMD charges

Via the Daily Beast:

It’s conceivable that someone else actually edited the clip. But a Facebook official, confirming a Daily Beast investigation, said the video was first posted on Politics WatchDog directly from Brooks’ personal Facebook account. [emphasis ours]

If the Daily Beast’s description of Facebook’s actions is accurate, Facebook compromised the privacy of one of its users, handing over information on his activity to a journalist who was clearly engaged in a politically motivated hatchet-job.

Facebook has been rocked by repeated privacy scandals over the past two years, including giving major corporations access to user data without permission. CEO Mark Zuckerberg recently unveiled a re-branding effort emphasizing the company’s commitment to protecting the privacy of its users.

“I believe that the future is private,” Zuckerberg said at a recent Facebook conference.

Even left-wing feminist Caroline Orr, who described the Pelosi parody as “disgusting” (it’s simply a video of Pelosi slowed down to make her words appear slurred), expressed shock at the idea of Facebook handing over private information about its users.