CrossFit quits Facebook and Instagram citing long list of grievances

CrossFit quit their Facebook and Instagram pages this week, citing a long list of grievances surrounding censorship and privacy while also being closely tied to the social media giants removal of a South African diet page from their platforms.

In an impassioned Thursday press release, the branded fitness regimen described itself as being a ‘contrarian physiological and nutrition prescription for improving fitness and health.’  

The release stated that its goal was to fight against the ‘tsunami of chronic disease’ and added that it would step in to help allies for the cause in the case that there were ‘overreaching governments, malicious competitors, and corrupt academic organizations’ present.  

While it would eventually list several issues, CrossFit stated that the final straw came when Facebook removed Banting7DayMealPlan – a ‘low-carbohydrate, high-fat diet’ efficacy group – from its platforms ‘without warning or explanation.’ 

‘Facebook’s action should give any serious person reason to pause, especially those of us engaged in activities contrary to prevailing opinion,’ CrossFit continued.

CrossFit stated that as of Wednesday, the pages would be suspended on Facebook and Instagram. So far, CrossFit Health is the only page that still remains on Facebook. 

They shared that company would be investigating the reasoning behind Banting7DayMealPlan’s removal and then continued with a list of ‘well-known public complaints’ that also led to the decision: 

The release blasted Facebook for having ‘weak intellectual property protections’ and ‘poor security protocols’ that led to massive security breaches of user data (Zuckerberg apologizing for data leaks)

While it would eventually list several issues, CrossFit stated that the final straw came when Facebook removed Banting7DayMealPlan – a ‘low-carbohydrate, high-fat diet’ efficacy group – from its platforms ‘without warning or explanation.’

Their first grievance was that Facebook collected user information and shared that data with government entities. 

CrossFit also mentioned Facebook’s collaborative efforts in government surveillance – specifically highlighting the PRISM program. 

Next, they highlighted that Facebook removes user accounts at the direction of third parties and also operate as a business in its disseminating of user information to governments and businesses. 

‘Facebook’s news feeds are censored and crafted to reflect the political leanings of Facebook’s Utopian socialists while remaining vulnerable to misinformation campaigns designed to stir up violence and prejudice,’ the release added. 

So far, CrossFit Health is the only page that still remains on Facebook

The release blasted Facebook for having ‘weak intellectual property protections’ and ‘poor security protocols’ that led to massive security breaches of user data. 

Lastly, CrossFit voiced how Facebook was ‘complicit in the global chronic disease crisis’ and ultimately led to them being under review by the brand. 

In an interview with Morning Chalk Up, a CrossFit blog, CEO Greg Glassman asserted that Facebook ‘doesn’t comport with my community standards for privacy and decency, so we’re out’

‘Facebook is acting in the service of food and beverage industry interests by deleting the accounts of communities that have identified the corrupted nutritional science responsible for unchecked global chronic disease,’ the release concluded.

‘In this, it follows the practices of Wikipedia and other private platforms that host public content but retain the ability to remove or silence—without the opportunity for real debate or appeal—information and perspectives outside a narrow scope of belief or thought. In this case, the approved perspective has resulted in the deaths of millions through preventable diseases.’

In an interview with Morning Chalk Up, a CrossFit blog, CEO Greg Glassman asserted that Facebook ‘doesn’t comport with my community standards for privacy and decency, so we’re out.’

CrossFit had 2.4million followers on its Instagram and 3.1million followers on their Facebook page.