By Francis Folz | United States
In a seemingly unprecedented move by Twitter, the social media giant has permanently disabled Alex Jones’ personal account. They also terminated the account of his media company, ‘Infowars’. Twitter claims they removed Jones and Infowars over “Tweets and videos… that violate our abusive behavior policy”
Today, we permanently suspended @realalexjones and @infowars from Twitter and Periscope. We took this action based on new reports of Tweets and videos posted yesterday that violate our abusive behavior policy, in addition to the accounts’ past violations. https://t.co/gckzUAV8GL
— Twitter Safety (@TwitterSafety) September 6, 2018
They did not specify which tweet(s) prompted such actions. However the tech firm did state that prior violations played a factor in the company’s ultimate decision. This ban also applies to Twitter’s video platform “Periscope”.
Jones is not the only media figure that Twitter has removed. Recently, in fact, they terminated and suspended the accounts of far more moderate figures. This includes, but is not limited to, Scott Horton and the Ron Paul Institute.
According to CBS, a video cited pertaining to Alex’s ban displays Jones accosting CNN reporter Oliver Darcy during the congressional hearings that occurred on Capital Hill only one day prior. Many also speculated Jones’ heated discussion with Senator Marco Rubio could have prompted Twitter’s actions.
This is not the first time Jones has appeared in the crosshairs of Silicon Valley. Last month, YouTube (owned by Google), Apple, and Facebook removed their content from Jones and Infowars. They too indicated a violation of their user policies for rationale behind the decision.
Twitter’s actions come on the heels of their CEO Jack Dorsey testifying before Congress on September 5th in regards to right-leaning censorship on their platform. Dorsey assured Congress that Twitter does not attempt to censor voices that express a conservative or non-mainstream opinion. Despite this, many feel that the decision to block Jones expresses a different reality.
After all, several tweets have indicated an openness towards harm against our current president. These, though, all fell short of Twitter’s abusive behavior policy standards.
Or die. Die today also be good. Die be very very good. https://t.co/Pykwj9eJmD
— Melania On The Run (@MelaniaTrumpe) August 29, 2018
Unfortunately, actions and inactions like these only validate Jones’ conspiracies, whether Twitter, Facebook, and Google recognize it or not. Jones, who has critiqued the media frequently, may be quick to point out his belief in a double standard. If so, he will continue to fan the flames of anti-media thought among some Americans. As Twitter claims to be unbiased, though, it appears the censorship debate is just commencing.
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