“Twitter Inc. on Tuesday suspended the far-right talk-show host Alex Jones for violating the social media company’s policies,” Tripp Mickle reports for The Wall Street Journal. “Mr. Jones will be blocked from posting on Twitter for seven days because of an offending tweet, the company said. Twitter declined to comment on the content that violated its policies, but in a note to Mr. Jones it said a tweet about taking action against web censorship included a link to a video that violated the company’s policy against targeted harassment of someone or inciting others to intimidate or harass someone.”
“Twitter’s move came more than a week after technology companies, including Apple Inc., YouTube and Facebook Inc. removed content from Mr. Jones or his far-right site, Infowars,” Mickle reports. “The actions against Infowars intensified a growing debate over what role tech companies play in policing controversial content on their platforms while they simultaneously support the principle of free speech.”
“As Apple removed links to some Infowars podcasts and YouTube terminated some of its channels,” Mickle reports, “Twitter’s Chief Executive Jack Dorsey said his company didn’t remove Mr. Jones or Infowars because neither had violated the platform’s policies.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: It’s a ban-fest!
Of course, the inherent danger of censorship is that you make the censored more alluring by elevating their musings into ideas too “dangerous” to hear. – MacDailyNews, August 6, 2018
Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants; electric light the most efficient policeman. — Louis D. Brandeis
SEE ALSO:
Apple is monitoring Alex Jones’ Infowars app for content violations as it becomes 3rd-most downloaded app this week – August 9, 2018
Alex Jones: Infowars has racked up 5.6 million new subscribers in the past 48 hours – August 8, 2018
Tim Cook sends Mark Zuckerberg, YouTube, and Spotify scrambling over Infowars’ Alex Jones – August 8, 2018
Jack Dorsey explains why Twitter isn’t banning Alex Jones and Infowars – August 8, 2018
Infowars’ Alex Jones blasts Apple, Google, others; warns on internet censorship – August 7, 2018
Apple’s ‘Infowars’ move thrusts tech giant into the debate over censoring content on internet platforms – August 6, 2018
Apple removes most of Alex Jones’ Infowars podcasts from iTunes Store – August 6, 2018
Big Brother is watching. I got suspended for simply saying that mental illness should not be encouraged as an acceptable lifestyle. Watch out for the thought police!
Oh no! You got suspended and will return someday!! How ever will you survive!?! Does cruel and unusual punishment include “getting suspended from Twitter” nowadays? It’s really a shame that you can’t post that exact same statement anywhere else on the Internet! They may as well have you under house arrest and a gag order!
Oh and let’s never forget MDN’s ACTUAL take:
“Of course, the inherent danger of censorhsip is that you make the censored more alluring by elevating the musings run-of-the-mill crackpots into ideas too “dangerous” to hear.”
Take a breath there dude. Just pointing out that being offended is the flip side of freedom of speech. There is no safety net that can shield the overly sensitive from words. How can one expect to have a serious discussion on anything without being offended?
And you’re offended that they suspended you? 🙂
You know what else is the flip side of freedom of speech? Consequences. Of which, for an anonymous internet being, there’s not a lot of. However, ONE of the few consequences can be that a service doesn’t like the cut of your jib messing up the servers that THEY bought and paid for.
Be glad you didn’t decide to practice your freedom of speech in person in a private biker bar! By the way, bellyaching about a “suspension” from a private service… preeetty much snowflake behavior there.
Did I keep you from an Antifa rally?
By your over zealous response, I suspect you have an overly inflated opinion of yourself. And pointing out the ridiculous politically correctness of society today is far from bellyaching…purely a fact.
Regarding your biker comment…just can’t understand the thought process going on here dude.
“preeetty much snowflake behavior there.”
Irony, I get it… The MAIN reason these private companies are squashing right-wing views is to prevent the snowflakes from learning facts that they don’t want snowflakes to know about.
Why? They are terrified of losing their power.
Leftists don’t want snowflakes to learn any political truths other than the ‘truths’ the leftist ‘taught’ to the snowflakes.
Now that’s great and so true …
sherm — please share with us what activity you were labelling as a mental illness.
Given the history of Jones followers invading Comet Ping Ping and making death threats against school shooting survivors, it is hard to take a call to “get your battle rifles ready” for the media and others as anything other than an incitement to violence. Even if Twitter were bound by the 1st Amendment—and it isn’t—that sort of thing isn’t protected speech. The man may look like a clown, but he has done real harm and can do more if decent people keep promoting his message.
“Given the history of Jones followers invading Comet Ping Ping and making death threats against school shooting survivors,”
Bet dollars to doughnuts that a huge proportion of the most outrageous racist (and others such as threatening to kill school shooting survivors) comments on Jones websites are made by liberals, progressives, leftists, commies, and socialists POSING as right wing followers.
Its how they work.
Amen. On MDN USER is the número uno right wing poser denigrating everyone not a Democrat. How sick is that?
Given the history you ONLY have a problem with right wing speech. How do feel about cop killer rap lyrics? And how do feel about the hypocrisy of Apple selling them for a profit? Should they be censored like Alex Jones? After all you have a problem with death threats against Comet, do you feel the same about the men and women in blue?
Intended for TXUSER …
I was IN law enforcement for thirty years, so… yes, I feel every bit as strongly as you do about death threats against officers. I was the target of such threats, as were most of my coworkers. Some of those threats came from within the InfoWars orbit (he attacks law enforcement at least as often as he attacks liberals), so forgive me for taking this personally.
Where you and I differ, apparently, is in regarding threats uttered by a conspiracy theorist with a proven history of provoking violence as harmless free speech. This isn’t just about tolerance. You have repeatedly stated your belief that social media platforms should be obligated to assist Jones by publishing his hateful message.
I’m betting I could find plenty of people killed by angry white guys for every peace officer who has died in a deliberate attack provably motivated by rap lyrics. Stop playing your game of whataboutism and personal insults and show just an ounce of concern for the unity of our nation.
“Stop playing your game of whataboutism and personal insults and show just an ounce of concern for the unity of our nation.”
Sorry, I have to laugh. You talk about “unity.” ROTFL
Stop playing your game of deflection. Your use of “whataboutism” is DEFLECTION
GRANDE BS. 🐂💩
You are obviously incapable of answering a direct question. Here it is for how many times I have asked and you declined not to answer. BTW, that’s not an insult, that’s reality.
I asked you this question so many times since Apple began censoring Alex Jones and each time you have deflected. Your post proves it AGAIN today talking about your career, I did not ask you that.
Here is what I asked:
How do feel about cop killer rap lyrics? And how do feel about the hypocrisy of Apple selling them for a profit? Should they be censored like Alex Jones?
ANSWER THE QUESTIONS …
I cannot teach you to read. I already said I felt as strongly about threats to law enforcement as you do. I have actually been targeted by them and I didn’t like it. You armchair wannabes don’t have a clue.
I don’t have a strong opinion on Apple’s lyrics policy because I don’t know of any examples of actual violence instigated via iTunes as I do of actual violence instigated via Podcasts. Absent a concrete threat, I don’t favor limiting people’s art. What Jones does isn’t art.
Since I don’t believe Alex Jones is being censored, I can’t answer your last question.
“I cannot teach you to read. I already said I felt as strongly about threats to law enforcement as you do.”
AGAIN, that’s not what I asked you artful deflection dodger.
I asked you about cop killer lyrics sold for profit in iTunes and whether or not that is hypocrisy. NOW YOU LEARN TO READ.
This has nothing to do with threats that pan out and hurt people. What a lame deflection excuse and you know that type of information is not proven or tabulated.
Bottom line: Are cop killer lyrics sold in iTunes by Apple for profit HATE speech?
A simple yes or no will suffice…
Answer: I do not generally believe in limiting access to content unless it poses a substantial threat of an imminent breach of the peace. I do not see an imminent threat from old rap songs. I do see a threat from Jones’ incitements to violence.
Aside from that, you can go pound sand.
Kill cops from Apple store lyrics is not a threat?
Kill cops from Antifa is not a threat?
Kill cops from Black Lives Matter is not a threat?
Do BLM and Antifa have podcasts?
I could go on.
Thanks for assuring us you are a proven HYPOCRITE.
Pound anything you like, you deserve it …
Old rap songs do not threaten cops?
Following that logic, I guess old sexual harassment claims against Bill Cosby do not threaten, correct?
Yes, an old threat can still be a threat. It cannot be an IMMINENT threat unless there is a present danger of violence. There is next to no evidence that anybody (who would not have done so anyway) was actually motivated to attack the police even when these songs were brand new. There is certainly no evidence that they are a present threat now.
When Alex Jones calls on his listeners to get out their war rifles and prepare to attack the media, that is a clear and present danger. The threat is clearly imminent. Even the Federal Government has the authority under the First Amendment to control speech that poses an imminent danger.
Bill Cosby committed rape. It was rape at the time and it is rape now. The crime was committed within the span of the statute of limitations. I am not surprised that you are still defending rapists and pussy grabbers.
Old threats, new threats, what the frickin’ hell is the difference?
Right, you support censorship of Alex Jones and because you are incapable of acknowledging a level playing field THAT ALL THREATS MATTER.
You STILL refuse to answer the question of if Apple allows HATE and THREATS from the Left for profit, why do you ONLY support censorship of the Right, hmmm?
Since you are a leftist coward and cannot answer direct questions, here is what I believe is going on with you.
Pure Democrat politics, unfair, not balanced, ridiculously nuanced, rules apply to everyone except hypocrites like us, GOT IT …
The “frickin’ difference” is that making a threat of imminent harm is a crime in every civilized nation on earth. Making a non-imminent threat isn’t a crime in Texas or any other jurisdiction of which I am aware.
I realize that may this be a subtle distinction for somebody who wants to lock up an uppity woman for having an insecure email server while excusing a man who admitted to drugging four dozen women so he could have sex without their consent. As I have said previously, both positions are entirely consistent with your support for a failed businessman and vulgar reality star whose sexist piggery is a matter of national disgrace and international scorn.
“As I have said previously, both positions are entirely consistent with your support for a failed businessman and vulgar reality star whose sexist piggery is a matter of national disgrace and international scorn.”
So how do you feel about Bill Clinton and his enabler Hillary, FAKE conservative? He was impeached. He lost his law license. He was fined over $800,000.
President Trump is a proud self made billionaire who does not take a penny from taxpayers. You are INCAPABLE of fairness and a level playing Mr. Santimonius
I wasn’t defending Bill Clinton’s exploitation of women. Never have.
You were defending Bill Cosby, a convicted serial rapist. You have been excusing his behavior on this site for at least a couple of years now with the absurd fantasy that drugging women in order to violate them was acceptable in the 1960s and 70s. Maybe it was acceptable at your frat house, but I can assure you that it was considered a major felony at the courthouse. The only change in the law about that time is that Americans started sending rapists to prison for life instead of hanging them.
I find your opinion on Donald Trump about as persuasive as your defense of serial rape.
“I find your opinion on Donald Trump about as persuasive as your defense of serial rape.”
Cosby is a Hollywood celebrity, not a president with interns. I wasn’t defending Bill Cosby’s rape of women. Only one time offered an alternative theory before all the facts were in. You POUNCED on it, put words in my mouth and obviously never forgot about it, just like I never forgot about your BIG LIE that you are a “straight white male conservative.”
So, when all the facts came out Cosby was properly convicted, totally support the verdict, justice is served and case closed. You want to keep beating a FALSE dead horse, be my guest I could not care less.
Clinton was also accused of rape, guess you conveniently forgot that part. I NEVER SAID you defended Clinton. It’s what you didn’t say about Clinton that is highly disturbing. Never heard you once EXCORIATE Clinton, like you have done with Cosby, Jones and Trump. That is called hypocrisy a word you have never used and refuse to acknowledge so I assume you support it.
Your pattern is clear and charts a road map. As a liberal activist your MO exactly follows the playbook of CNN, NYT and the rest of the liberal media noisy cabal. Never criticize a Democrat especially if they are guilty or have the appearance of guilt. Democrats are above the law, Republicans are not and our ONLY DAILY MISSION is to make them look bad and then look the other way when our team stumbles.
So blatantly obvious and who do you think you are FOOLING?!? Obviously, you are not capable of fairness and this old saying sums you up perfectly:
Knowledge without justice, is cunning, not wisdom …
TxUser said: “I do not see an imminent threat from old rap songs. I do see a threat from Jones’ incitements to violence.”
Then you don’t really “see”.
Exactly right, kramer. He doesn’t see his own hypocrisy, double standards and blind devotion to Democrats only. That in the end always blinds him to fairness and equality. It’s his way or the highway, sad …
I already answered the question, twice. If you can’t understand my answer, that isn’t my problem
LIAR.
“I don’t have a strong opinion on Apple’s lyrics policy”
EXACTLY! You don’t have an OPINION and just posted you answered the question twice! No credibility.
So I ask again and give you a chance to redeem yourself:
Bottom line: Are cop killer lyrics sold in iTunes by Apple for profit HATE speech?
A simple yes or no will suffice…
Rap lyrics? Not that you had an credibility to begin with but …. LMFAO
Laugh all you want brainless. It is reality …
And yet.. Pornography, ANTIFA, BLM, terrorists groups are rampant in Twitter!
Ooooh the HYPOCRISY!
Yeah. Zuckerberg even defended antisemitism as “freedom of speech.” Pure hypocrisy.