The Twitter Files

Internal emails published by journalist David Zweig show that there were “countless instances” of Twitter posts being taken down or labeled as “misleading” because they differed from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines or “establishment views” around COVID-19 or vaccines.

The last paragraph:

The Bird App has faced a ferocious cancel campaign following its change of management. Elon Musk’s pledge to turn Twitter into a free speech platform has met major resistance from the institutional corporate and governmental ruling class. Several WEF partners, such as BlackRock, have joined the attacks against Twitter, boycotting the platform in protest of its “content moderation” policies. It should come as no surprise that the ruling class’s favorite narrative and ideas shop for technocratic tyranny has come after Twitter, given that the latter app is now serving as the one major global social media platform for open debate and dialogue.

He begins with this:

– By censoring info that was true but inconvenient to U.S. govt. policy
– By discrediting doctors and other experts who disagreed
– By suppressing ordinary users, including some sharing the CDC’s *own data*

1. THREAD:

THE TWITTER FILES: HOW TWITTER RIGGED THE COVID DEBATE

– By censoring info that was true but inconvenient to U.S. govt. policy
– By discrediting doctors and other experts who disagreed
– By suppressing ordinary users, including some sharing the CDC’s *own data*

— David Zweig (@davidzweig) December 26, 2022

Here’s the epigraph to this article:

“It is unfortunate that conspiracy theorists and others are feeding the American public misinformation with the sole purpose of attempting to discredit the agency.” —FBI Press release in response to the Twitter files.

Here’s Howard’s first paragraph:

What’s most appalling about the Twitter revelations of the Intel Community’s years-long strangle-hold on social media is not just the evil fuckery itself of the FBI, CIA, and others colluding to gaslight the US electorate, but the fact that there is no institution in the land that can intervene to adjudicate or discipline these rogue agencies. Nobody expects the FBI’s parent, the Department of Justice, to look into any of this.

This is what is most appalling about so much that is going on. The rule of law is dead in America.

The Naked Emperor cites a summary by Benjaman Carlson:

1. History changed because of this:
   • Hunter Biden’s alleged corruption censored;
   • Covid 19 lockdown debate stifled;
   • Trump silenced.

You may agree with each decision. But there is no denying that halting information flow and free debate had real consequences.

2. • FBI was working with Twitter and paid them million of dollars;
   • Blacklists and shadow bans were real;
   • US intel lobbied to censor accounts;
   • Covid-19 conversation was heavily manipulated;
   • Twitter rules changed and enforced by whim.Many things called conspiracy theories were true:
3. • ‘Safety, harm, violence’ redefined to apply to ideas;
   • Opinions and information deemed ‘unsafe’ subject to silencing;
   • Jokes, memes, questions about the origin of Covid off limits.Censorship is being cloaked in the language of safety:
4. • FBI has 80 staff monitoring speech;
   • Small accounts on left and right flagged;
   • FBI held frequent meetings with Twitter;
   • Facebook, Youtube and Instagram = similar?
   • Private censors & police control what you say and to whom.The government is policing opinion:
5. • Twitter execs repeatedly and publicly denied shadow bans;
   • In reality, bans were in place as “visibility filtering”;
   • Ultimately, no accountability to public.Social media executives lie freely:
6. Free speech is controlled by a small group:
   • Biggest decisions in Twitter Files made by 3-4 individuals;
   • Despite misgivings and doubts, once made, decisions stuck;
   • Now it’s Musk.

One difference: his embrace of public polls to set policy.

7. The slippery slope is real:
   • Staff rebellion led to Trump ban;
   • Staff called for mover covid-19 censorship;
   • 2021-22 saw increase of bans and ‘one-offs’.