Following a statement by Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, explaining that Alex Jones and Infowars have not violated the company’s terms of service, leftists users of the social media website whined and complained that Twitter refused to follow in the footsteps of Google, Facebook and others by banning Infowars content.
“We didn’t suspend Alex Jones or Infowars yesterday,” Dorsey wrote on Tuesday night. “We know that’s hard for many but the reason is simple: he hasn’t violated our rules.”
We didn’t suspend Alex Jones or Infowars yesterday. We know that’s hard for many but the reason is simple: he hasn’t violated our rules. We’ll enforce if he does. And we’ll continue to promote a healthy conversational environment by ensuring tweets aren’t artificially amplified.
— jack (@jack) August 8, 2018
Truth is we’ve been terrible at explaining our decisions in the past. We’re fixing that. We’re going to hold Jones to the same standard we hold to every account, not taking one-off actions to make us feel good in the short term, and adding fuel to new conspiracy theories.
— jack (@jack) August 8, 2018
If we succumb and simply react to outside pressure, rather than straightforward principles we enforce (and evolve) impartially regardless of political viewpoints, we become a service that’s constructed by our personal views that can swing in any direction. That’s not us.
— jack (@jack) August 8, 2018
Accounts like Jones' can often sensationalize issues and spread unsubstantiated rumors, so it’s critical journalists document, validate, and refute such information directly so people can form their own opinions. This is what serves the public conversation best.
— jack (@jack) August 8, 2018
While Dorsey explained that it would not be in Twitter’s best interest to censor free speech, it was abundantly clear that he was not defending or endorsing Alex Jones or Infowars.
Nevertheless, the misinformed cry-babys lined up to take shots at Dorsey over the statement:
You’re very terrible and everyone knows it. Your actions are to continually bend over in favor of nazis, racists, misogynists and misinformers plus bots. You’ve done it to prop up your stock price and made the world worse. https://t.co/avXh3dmmiu
— Oliver Willis (@owillis) August 8, 2018
This poorly thought out, ill-advised statement is contradictory. Essentially: "We didn't suspend Alex Jones because he hasn't broken the rules we came up with ourselves. We have to be impartial. We can't just go making up rules!" https://t.co/4B3TiyF3nU
— Brandon Friedman (@BFriedmanDC) August 8, 2018
then change your rules. You are perpetuating and enabling great harm to the country and the world. Clean it up. And stop with your patronizing tweets to us. This is on YOU, @jack https://t.co/fvmOv4Ht1H
— Cheri Jacobus (@CheriJacobus) August 8, 2018
You own the company. If the rules on the books are insufficient and don't achieve your company's goals of promoting a healthy conversational environment, you can change them. https://t.co/1ndHWZT86B
— Jill Filipovic (@JillFilipovic) August 8, 2018
Someday, Jack, you will understand the magnitude of your decision and you will, I guarantee you, feel shame. https://t.co/NGOTcZu7yV
— Melinda Byerley (@MJB_SF) August 8, 2018
Don't get mad. Get even. Stop using Twitter. It's hard to imagine worse people to go to bat for than Alex "Sandy Hook truther" Jones, or the Proud Boys who invaded Portland. But @Jack wants their business more than yours. #DeleteTwitter https://t.co/Bnn3kXiDy7
— Dan O'Sullivan (@Bro_Pair) August 8, 2018
Brace yourself. The ratio is coming. https://t.co/XqppWCFVeE
— Matthew A. Cherry (@MatthewACherry) August 8, 2018
Translation: “I am totally abdicating all responsibility here and relying on journalists to police my website because I am gutless.” –@jack https://t.co/Qb881sl32Y
— Molly Knight (@molly_knight) August 8, 2018
*sigh* what are the “rules” Jack? https://t.co/gxhZR3chQQ
— Symone D. Sanders (@SymoneDSanders) August 8, 2018
Seems like a problem with the rules https://t.co/9Yse4kTLqB
— Dan Pfeiffer (@danpfeiffer) August 8, 2018
don't put this on us https://t.co/gwdQHJYAYA
— Mike Murphy (@mcwm) August 8, 2018
Have you considered adding a new rule against users who harass the parents of dead kindergartners so much that they have to go into hiding? https://t.co/IoYRLZZKqG
— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) August 8, 2018
Jones' show accused families of dead children of being part of a government conspiracy, he threatened Mueller while mimicking a gun with his hand, and other similar gross examples of spreading hoaxes and violent rhetoric. Your rules SUCK if they don't prohibit that.
— Mark Hughes (@markhughesfilms) August 8, 2018
The conspiracy theories of Alex Jones about the Sandy Hook mass shooting of children have led to harassment of grieving parents by his lunatic acolytes.
If Alex Jones doesn't violate your rules, your rules aren't worth shit. https://t.co/7QeqRLu4N6
— Zac Petkanas (@Zac_Petkanas) August 8, 2018
important for people to form their own opinions about whether the sandy hook parents are lying about their murdered children https://t.co/zZLFsrJVw3
— Ashley Feinberg (@ashleyfeinberg) August 8, 2018
OK, I'll start.
Despite the raving claims of Alex Jones, Sandy Hook parents did not fake the murders of their babies.
There.
We good? https://t.co/jCfc7LGt9N— Bill Weir (@BillWeirCNN) August 8, 2018
Some users actually still value free speech, however:
This is the right approach. The best antidote to “bad” speech, however one wishes to define it, is more speech. https://t.co/mRugSJRhYM
— Sean Davis (@seanmdav) August 8, 2018
Twitter hasn’t always done the right thing, but this thread is spot on. Hope the other major platforms take note. https://t.co/zOXIYDxKjS
— (((AG))) (@AG_Conservative) August 8, 2018
This is the best answer I have seen on this topic so far. Thank you Jack. https://t.co/FOIDTaudAi
— Chad Felix Greene (@chadfelixg) August 8, 2018
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