Mark #Zuckerberg has publicly said #Facebook Inc. allows its more than three billion users to speak on equal footing with the #elites of #politics, #culture and #journalism, and that its standards of behavior apply to everyone, no matter their status or #fame.
...
In private, the company has built a system that has exempted #high-profile users from some or all of its rules, according to company documents reviewed by The #WallStreetJournal.
...
The program, known as “ #crossCheck” or “ #XCheck,” was initially intended as a quality-control measure for actions taken against high-profile accounts, including #celebrities, #politicians and #journalists. Today, it shields millions of VIP users from the company’s normal enforcement process, the documents show. Some users are “ #whitelisted”—rendered immune from #enforcement actions—while others are allowed to post #rule-violating material pending Facebook employee reviews that often never come.
...
In 2019, it allowed international soccer star #Neymar to show nude photos of a woman, who had accused him of #rape, to tens of millions of his fans before the content was removed by Facebook.