Local Editor
The US online social networking service Facebook has been promoting same-sex marriage by allowing its members to add a rainbow colored flag – a symbol of homosexual movements – to their profile photos.
Twenty-six million people added a rainbow filter to their Facebook profile last week after the US Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage.
Facebook said that two of its interns came up with the filter at a hackathon the week of the Supreme Court ruling.
The display illustrates the declining moral values in the United States and other Western countries, and provided a clear example of how social media influences societies. Some conservative opponents of same-sex marriage in the US sought to counter the trend of the rainbow filter with postings of American flags, but the campaign never became widespread.
Academics who study Facebook say the social network, where users see content posted by people they know and trust, has the power to shape public opinion in unique and powerful ways.
As of March 2013, Facebook reported having about 1.1 billion monthly active users, globally. Critics have repeatedly said that the same-sex marriage will lead to the disintegration of the family institution and the sanctity of marriage.
They say the same-sex marriage is against the nature of human beings and all divine religions define marriage as the union between a man and a woman.
On June 26, the United States became the 21st and most populous nation to legalize same-sex marriage as a result of the US Supreme Court ruling.
Source: Press Tv
