Facebook shuts down 'Stop the Steal' group over its 'delegitimization of the election process'

Stop the steal.
(Image credit: Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Facebook has shut down a large pro-Trump group that had become a hotbed for conspiracy theories related to Democrats supposedly trying to steal the election.

The group, called "Stop the Steal," had gained 360,000 members within its first two days of existing, at one point adding new members at a rate of 1,000 every 10 seconds, Reuters reports. Many of the posts on the page promoted debunked or blatantly false claims and misinformation, including that Sharpies supposedly invalidated certain ballots (they didn't), or demanding an entirely new election. "Among the group's administrators were two Breitbart alumni recently hit with warrants in a bust over a half-baked border wall scheme that led to criminal charges against former Trump advisor Steve Bannon," added The Daily Beast. "And running a donation-seeking website associated with the Facebook page was the president of a conservative web services company, who previously registered the website 'transracialism.com' and at least one other domain name related to election uncertainty."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Jeva Lange

Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.