NYT: Facebook Hired GOP Firm To Bash George Soros

The Daily Beast reports:

Facebook reportedly used a Republican opposition-research firm and its connections to a Jewish civil-rights group to link the anti-Facebook movement to prominent liberal donor George Soros and claim that some criticism against the tech giant was anti-Semitic, The New York Times reports.

Facing negative press, Facebook reportedly expanded its use of Definers Public Affairs, a firm founded by “veterans of Republican presidential politics,” to bash Facebook’s competitors and link Soros to anti-Facebook activists.

A research document reportedly circulated by the firm this summer claimed Soros was an “unacknowledged force” behind the widespread condemnation of Facebook.

The New York Times report is quite lengthy and while the gist of the most news-making portion is above, the full article is really something.

A boardroom confrontation. Sheryl shouting. A bungled cover-up. Pressuring senators. And George Soros. No, really.
How Sheryl Sandberg and Mark Zuckerberg steered the world's dominant social media platform through a maelstrom. https://t.co/MLgVwWYNWT

— Nick Confessore (@nickconfessore) November 14, 2018

Facebook’s Crisis PR Firm Pushed Soros Conspiracy to Discredit Critics (Report) https://t.co/gCjQfe49WR

— Variety (@Variety) November 14, 2018

To portray its critics as Soros-backed, Facebook hired a PR firm called Definers Public Affairs.

That firm is headed by Joe Pounder, who also runs America Rising — a right-wing oppo group Trump's Acting AG Matt Whitaker hired for "research" in 2015-16: https://t.co/SteaHXdWw6 pic.twitter.com/RuDZIFVsaA

— Ken Klippenstein (@kenklippenstein) November 15, 2018