One day after what appeared to be a coordinated attack by media giants Facebook, Apple, Spotify and Google on Alex Jones, whose various social media accounts were banned or suspended in a matter of hours, the crackdown against alternative media figures continued as several Libertarian figures, including the Ron Paul Institute director, found their Twitter accounts suspended.
Two more casualties of the Twitter purge of antiwar voices: @ScottHortonShow, the new editorial director of https://t.co/QNAmINHNCX, and @DanielLMcAdams, director of the Ron Paul Institute.
Are you next?
— Justin Raimondo (@JustinRaimondo) August 6, 2018
On Monday, Twitter suspended the editorial director of antiwar.com Scott Horton, former State Department employee Peter Van Buren, and Dan McAdams, the executive director of the Ron Paul Institute.
Scott Horton, Peter Van Buren, and Dan McAdams have been suspended from Twitter.
If you go to their accounts, you will see their old tweets, but they are prohibited from making new tweets. They were reported by @KatzOnEarth for criticizing his posts. Please complain to Twitter. pic.twitter.com/kaWAqasLKQ— Antiwar.com (@Antiwarcom) August 6, 2018
Horton was reportedly disciplined for the use of “improper language” against journalist Jonathan M. Katz, he said in a brief statement, while McAdams was suspended for retweeting him, he said. Past tweets in both accounts were available to the public at the time of the writing, unlike the account of Van Buren, which was fully suspended.
According to TargetLiberty, Horton and McAdams fell victim of Twitter’s suspension algorithm after objecting to Katz’s quarrel with Van Buren over an earlier interview.
https://twitter.com/philinexile/status/1026685461568344069
RIP @WeMeantWell pic.twitter.com/TwtO1QD17d
— 11811 (@kirchin) August 5, 2018
The suspensions come days after Twitter suspended black conservative Candace Owen from Twitter for highlighting the algorithmic hypocrisy of Twitter by replacing the word “white” with “Jewish” in a series of tweets modeled on those by New York Times editor Sarah Jeong.
just after controversial conservative Alex Jones, and his podcast InfoWars, were kicked out from most social media platforms, prompting conservative to accuse the social networks of collusion in a collective crackdown on non-mainstream voices. The Silicon Valley giants were criticized by the US political establishment for failing to prevent alleged Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. Meanwhile, critics now say the pressured media giants are engaging in political censorship, using their market dominance and lack of legislated neutrality requirements to target descent voices ahead of the midterm elections.
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In a scathing op-ed on Tuesday, Nigel Farage wrote that “while many on the libertarian right and within the conservative movement have their issues with Alex Jones and InfoWars, this week’s announcement by YouTube, Facebook, Apple, and Spotify represents a concerted effort of proscription and censorship that could just as soon see any of us confined to the dustbin of social media history.”
These platforms that claim to be “open” and in favor of “free speech” are now routinely targeting — whether by human intervention or not — the views and expressions of conservatives and anti-globalists.
This is why they no longer even fit the bill of “platforms.” They are publishers in the same way we regard news outlets as publishers. They may use more machine learning and automation, but their systems clearly take editorial positions. We need to hold them to account in the same way we do any other publisher.
Farage then accused social media giants of being corporatist:
That they cannot profess to be neutral, open platforms while being illiberal, dictatorial, and hiding behind the visage of a private corporation (which are more often than not in bed with governments around the world at the very highest levels).
This isn’t capitalism. It’s corporatism.
He concludes that the real interference in “US democracy” comes not from Russia, but from some of its most powerful corporations which now yield more power in some cases than the government itself: “This isn’t “liberal democracy” as they keep pretending. It’s autocracy.”
“…for those that don’t take issue with the latest censorship of right-wingers by big social media — unless we take a stand now, who knows where it could end.”
Perspective:
“Infowars is controlled opposition, so what’s happening here is Infowars and Alex Jones are being used to give these companies more leeway to engage in similar actions against actual opposition and actual threats to powerful interests.”
— Blogger Paul Neocon, 8/7/18
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I agree and imagine he’s making big mammon for his participation in this stunt.
Exactly. While Alex Jones has the right to free speech, this whole event is designed to make Jones even “bigger” with most Americans who can’t stand the MSM, give alt platforms like Gab, Steemit, Yandex, Brave browser, Real Video and Vimeo, etc. more mammon as well, and set up a huge “divide and conquer” scenario. I am sure Jones approves of this despite his microphone screaming about it, and anyway, doesn’t it seem suspicious that YouTube, etc., is banning an avowed Zionist? Banning Jones was wrong, but I do think he approves of it for his sinister agenda.
The attack on free speech began a long time ago and in many forms. This stunt with Alex Jones is a bunch of BS. After the so called “surprise ban” he’s still trying to use the China and islamists are doing it. Not one mention that the owners of the platforms that took him down are zionist jews who’s ilk control the rest of this shithole and all its politicians, lawmakers, etc. He is controlled opposition. Made to be used and taken down when the time is right to make it seem as if there’s a purge on “his info”, as in, believe him when he directs you away from the ones pulling the strings. People like him are needed to keep people blind and clueless in case there is an awakening and to have them direct any efforts elsewhere. Yes, it won’t be long now until more and more actual truth tellers are silenced but we warned this was coming.
Jamal, EXACTLY. This fat boy money grubbing traitor is probably making some big mammon for his participation.
Most folks have woken to his bs which is very good. His audience is shrinking daily, I have to believe it.
I also heard one young fellow saying that AJ says he’s going to stay calm over this censorship. The young fellow said AJ rants, raves, & growls over stupid stuff, yet for some reason he’s going to stay calm over this. Young fellow makes a very good point by pointing this out, imo..
Of course he’s gonna, it’s all in the script
Definitely scripted.
Why am I not surprised!
Wrote about this earlier on my site. “Drama drama drama drama chameleon…”