Labour Deputy Leader Tom Watson is furious Tommy Robinson’s YouTube channel is exploding in popularity and he’s demanding Google CEO Sundar Pinchai ban him immediately.
“I have written to Google CEO @SundarPinchai calling on him, as a matter of urgency, to remove the YouTube page of Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, aka Tommy Robinson,” Watson tweeted on Saturday.
I have written to Google CEO @SundarPinchai calling on him, as a matter of urgency, to remove the YouTube page of Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, aka Tommy Robinson. pic.twitter.com/3smqXuVr1u
— Tom Watson (@tom_watson) March 2, 2019
His letter made clear this was not merely a request but a threat:
“As the UK’s Shadow Digital Secretary I have recently been making the argument that the social media companies have failed to regulate hate speech and harm on their platforms. It is clear, as I am sure you are aware, that UK legislators are now moving rapidly towards introducing legal regulatory powers to deal with this those who seek to use the garb of freedom of speech to, instead, preach violent hate with the aim of damaging and undermining our society.”
Watson also made it clear his anger is with Robinson’s rapidly growing popularity:
Stephen Yaxley-Lennon's YouTube subscribers have jumped from 294,000 to 330,000 in the four days since his ban from Facebook. It is imperative that YouTube now follows suit and ends the use of its platform by this preacher of hate.https://t.co/wMvh5k02Tf
— Tom Watson (@tom_watson) March 2, 2019
Google CEO @sundarpichai must ensure his YouTube platform follows the example of Facebook/ Instagram and, as a matter of urgency, removes violent racist Stephen Yaxley-Lennon's pages under its "hate speech" policy.https://t.co/Xz5gGdcCgr
— Tom Watson (@tom_watson) March 3, 2019
While Watson’s trying to use accusations of “racism” and “Islamophobia” to get Tommy Robinson banned, he’s also trying to use accusations of “antisemitism” to oust the leader of his own party, Jeremy Corbyn:
For too long our processes for dealing with racism and abuse have failed. If correct,this story suggests unacceptable political interference in dealing with antisemitism cases. I will be urgently consulting with colleagues before giving a fuller response. https://t.co/X9pv1NrV3B
— Tom Watson (@tom_watson) March 2, 2019
This guy is a real piece of work.
The Emergency Election Sale is now live! Get 30% to 60% off our most popular products today!