Social media giants Facebook, Spotify, Apple and YouTube have all banned Alex Jones, the conspiracy therorist behind InfoWars, for hate speech. Facebook claims Jones repeatedly violated community standards and an Apple spokesperson told Buzzfeed, “Apple does not tolerate hate speech, and we have clear guidelines that creators and developers must follow to ensure we provide a safe environment for all of our users.”
YouTube and Spotify also cite hate speech as their reason behind pulling the plug on Jones’ accounts.
However, Twitter has not followed suit and today caused outrage in the liberal community. Twitter CEO and founder Jack Dorsey explained why on his personal account today.
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
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
Many more details here: https://t.co/58dc4fwjQz
— jack (@jack) August 8, 2018
Dorsey will also reportedly be on Hannity’s radio show to discuss their decision.
News: @jack will be on @SeanHannity's radio show this afternoon to talk about @Twitter and the issues being raised by Republicans on the platform. I've been as critical as anybody but give them credit for engaging many of us publicly and privately. Lets see what actions follow.
— Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) August 8, 2018
This may come as a surprise to conservatives who have been accusing the Twitter platform of shadow banning their Tweets.
Kudos to @Jack for not giving in to the mob mindset by casually throwing around a vague term like “hate speech” and using it to justify banning Alex Jones. I don’t have any regard for Jones or the whataboutism he uses to defend his pet theories when questioned, but do hold contempt for people who use a platform like Twitter to press for what amounts to corporate censorship and the companies that give in to their caterwauling in exchange for a little good PR. Hopefully, Dorsey can inspire others to fight the mob that claimed James Gunn and tried to topple Samantha Bee.