Stay Connected
Atlanta Black Star/Politics/National
NationalNews

New Jersey Firefighter Claims Facebook Account Was Hacked After Months of Racist Posts Surfaces

Posted byBy Shamone Nelson | Published on: CommentsComments (0)

Keith J. Castaldo (pictured here) is being accused of posting disparaging, racially-charged photos on his Facebook page. He has since deleted his page, and he claimed that his page had been hacked. — NJ .com

A New Jersey firefighter has been suspended with pay after multiple racially offensive content was discovered on his personal Facebook page.

Keith J. Castaldo, who had been with the fire department for over 25 years, told the Jersey Journal Friday that his account was hacked. A series of hateful photos of Mulisms, other minority groups and disparaging comments about former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle were posted to the account over a period of several months last year.

Castaldo insists he’s innocent. “None of that stuff is mine. some pretty evil stuff that I don’t agree with whatsoever. … I have nothing to do with it and I don’t even know why it’s being put up,” he told the paper.

Bayonne, New Jersey Fire Chief Keith Weaver said, “This is a personnel matter and the department, in conjunction with the city, will conduct a full investigation into this.”

The account has since been deleted and according to Castaldo he’d not been an active user of the account for some time. “I got a warning from Facebook a while back that something was going wrong and that I had to deactivate. None of that stuff was mine. I don’t know what to tell ya. … That’s just not me,” Castaldo said.

Democracy needs journalism it can trust.

This election season, the stakes are higher than usual — and so is the pressure on newsrooms to soften their coverage, stay quiet, or just disappear. Independent reporting, the kind that answers to readers instead of advertisers or political pressure, matters more in a moment like this, not less.

For over 14 years, Atlanta Black Star has stayed independent and reader-funded. We have no corporate owner and no shareholders telling us what to cover or how to cover it. That independence is also our biggest vulnerability: nothing protects it except readers choosing to fund it directly.

Newspaper ad revenue has fallen more than 80% since 2005, and local newsrooms are closing at a rate of roughly two a week nationwide. When outlets go under in a moment like this, it's rarely the independent, reader-funded ones that get to stick around.

We know a request for support isn't why you came here. But without readers choosing to fund this work directly, the depth of reporting we can do at home and abroad shrinks along with everyone else's. If you're not in a position to give, that doesn't change how much we value you as a reader.

If you are able to, a recurring contribution does more for us than a single one-time gift, because it lets us plan the next investigation instead of just the next invoice. It takes about 30 seconds, no long form, no account. Thank you for continuing to support independent journalism and freedom of the press.

Give once Give monthly Support another way

Related Stories

Back to top