4 ms·

I've always been curious about that. Does Twitter forbid discussing lowering taxes? Maybe demanding harsher immigration policies? Higher prison sentences? Bans

by pron 4y ago

I've always been curious about that. Does Twitter forbid discussing lowering taxes? Maybe demanding harsher immigration policies? Higher prison sentences? Bans on abortion? Shutting down the department of education? Reinstating a monarchy? Who is more conservative than The Federalist? Quillette posts "race science" articles, and even the Claremont Institute, which is so reactionary that it balks at the term "conservative," posts articles on Twitter calling for ending democracy. Margarita Simonyan, a chief spokesperson for an ultraconservative authoritarian regime that is currently engaged in one of the deadliest wars in modern history against a budding democracy, has an account with over half a million followers. You want pre-Hellenic conceptions of the world? You got it! So seriously, what specific conservative content does Twitter disallow?

mojzu 4y ago
I'm not a big Twitter user but am often bombarded with right wing content on other sites like Reddit and Youtube no matter how often I try to tell the site/train the algorithm that it's not content I'm interested in seeing whatsoever, the idea that conservatives are being silenced when I (a left wing Brit) am constantly seeing their content is frankly ridiculous
- stiltzkin 4y ago
  That depends the subs you are subscribed, I usually get bombarded with left content and big subs are astroturfed by leftist.
- reitanqild 4y ago
  I think it is an algorithm thing: As a member of NAFO I get bombarded by Pro-Russian views every single time I refresh my timeline it seems, and I never like any of it or follow any of those genocidal maniacs or their cheerleaders :-/
- celdon25 4y ago
  > the idea that conservatives are being silenced when I (a left wing Brit) am constantly seeing their content is frankly ridiculous It doesn't matter if you're "left wing" or not - The algorithm decided that certain people should be steered toward that content and others away from it. So the content is not reaching people organically or through merit. Rather, you're selected based on a hidden formula that nobody gets to see, and certainly doesn't serve the interests of the viewers or the uploaders. If you don't understand how that is censorship, you're missing the point of the whole show.
ekianjo 4y ago
> that is currently engaged in one of the most deadly wars in history ? you dont have to use hyperbole to make a point.
- pron 4y ago
  I wasn't (although I'll qualify with "modern history"): https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2022/06/23/ukraine-war-deaths-soldiers-history/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2022/06/23/ukraine-wa...
  - ekianjo 4y ago
    If? Since when do we qualify a war as deadly based on linear projections in the future?
    - pron 4y ago
      No projections needed. By intensity it's in the top 25% deadliest already.
      - ekianjo 4y ago
        This statistic is completely irrelevant because we have massive outliers like WW1 and WW2 and then a host of small, proxy conflicts afterwards. You don't make statistics based on mixing apples and oranges together and then making classifications out of it. Plus, that Post article is ridiculous, you would obviously not put conflicts 200 years old like the US-Mexican war next to a conflict with modern weapons which are by nature much more deadly. If we go by this definition then most conflicts these days are in the upper 1% of fatalities compared to the whole of Human history, and that virtually says nothing interesting.
        pron 4y ago
        First the problem was that it's hyperbole and now that it's too obvious to be interesting? In any event, that statement was true and the fact remains that it is not only probably the most intense of the ongoing fifty or so armed conflicts -- which very much makes it stand out -- it is also among the most deadly in a long time, so I think pointing that out is pertinent, despite your stylistic reservations. Also, you can reach out to Paul Poast if you want further explanation about the conflict: https://www.paulpoast.com/bio-cv https://www.paulpoast.com/bio-cv
sneed-oil 4y ago
Twitter suppressed the NY Post's story on Hunter Biden's laptop right before the 2020 presidential election. Calling a surgeon who performed sex reassignment surgery a criminal is what got Jordan Peterson suspended until he'll remove that tweet. Trump was banned despite never telling anybody to go inside the Capitol building and even posting a video telling his supporters to go home. Milo Yiannopoulos was banned for making fun of an actress. Alex Jones was banned for posting a video where he insulted a CNN journalist. Nick Fuentes was banned for repeated violations but Twitter has never made clear what the relevant tweets were. These were just off the top of my head. I also remember tweets calling for mass reeducation of white people or the eradication of whiteness being allowed.
- pron 4y ago
  All of these ideas/notions/opinions/stories were very widely disseminated on Twitter to an audience of millions (BTW, the legality of Trump's behaviour, including what exactly he urged his followers to do, is under ongoing investigation). The suppression of the Post's story on Hunter Biden might have been an overreaction, that story itself was all over Twitter (that's how I heard about it). It's possible some tweets "calling for mass reeducation of white people or the eradication of whiteness" were not removed, but neither were tweets with vile racism/misogyny/antisemitism that constantly flood the platform. I assume a claim could be made (although it would be hard to support) that, on average, more conservatives are suspended than progressives for similar behaviour but that still amounts to zero conservative ideas suppressed. On the other hand, there's also a bias in violent acts between conservatives and progressives. If there's any conservative content banned or suppressed, I've yet to see a single example.
  - sneed-oil 4y ago
    > If there's any conservative content banned or suppressed, no one has yet to find even a single example. A pretty common conservative opinion is that there are only two genders, but Twitter doesn't allow misgendering
    - pron 4y ago
agensaequivocum 4y ago
Multiple people have been locked out for saying that a man cannot get pregnant. Saying that cutting the healthy breasts of a young girl is child abuse, or saying that giving a child puberty blockers is also child abuse. Stop being so obtuse
- pron 4y ago
  I don't know the particular circumstances of those sanctions, but all of these opinions have been widely disseminated on Twitter. Exactly none of them have been suppressed, as a quick Twitter search would immediately reveal. I understand that the feeling that conservative/reactionary ideas are suppressed has been an important myth in conservative circles for at least a century (to varying degrees), and that opinion itself is one of those conservative notions so prevalent on Twitter, but as a statement of fact, it is very easily disproved.
- rat87 4y ago
  So they're claiming things, that are part of being a supportive parent and are not abuse, are abusive. And possibly encouraging harrasment of supporting parents and doctors? Also I'm pretty sure vast majority of those getting top surgery are 18 or older.
celdon25 4y ago
Those topics aren't on the minds of conservatives lately, and if you think they are, you're either out of touch or making your point in bad faith. Since those ideas don't carry weight at the moment, they aren't a liability and therefore there's no reason to censor at this time. You mentioned in another comment that the "censorship myth" is "easily disproved". You might want to re-think your logic, or stop spreading such BS, even if it sounded clever to you.
- pron 4y ago
  I think you're wrong (e.g. The Federalist, Claremont, and Quillette are pretty much the zeitgeist of the more-extreme-than-mainstream right these days; Claremont pretty much is the pro-Trump/pro-fascist/anti-democratic section of conservative writers), but regardless, could you name a conservative opinion/idea/belief that Twitter does not widely disseminate?
  - celdon25 4y ago
    > could you name a conservative opinion/idea/belief that Twitter does not widely disseminate? I do not necessarily endorse or agree with the viewpoints of those who were banned. But some confirmed examples include: QAnon, vaccines, Hunter Biden laptop, use of gender pronouns. Anything Pro-Putin (there's growing support of Putin among conservatives, but I'm not one of them). Claiming that the 2020 election was stolen (where was Twitter in 2016?). Being a member of Proud Boys. Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twitter_suspensions#2022 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twitter_suspensions#2022 Also, accounts like @JamesOKeefeIII banned arbitrarily in retaliation. https://www.thedailybeast.com/project-veritas-founder-james-okeefe-permanently-booted-from-twitter https://www.thedailybeast.com/project-veritas-founder-james-... Meanwhile: https://rdi.org/twitters-dictator-problem/ https://rdi.org/twitters-dictator-problem/ - Same thing happened in India FYI. You should learn to understand that iron and velvet are two sides of the same coin.
    - pron 4y ago
      That some accounts were suspended under specific circumstances does not mean that conservative content is suppressed. Potential bias in moderation policies of specific behaviours/events and the matter of suppressing ideas are two separate issues (although the moderation of the Hunter Biden story, as I mentioned earlier, was probably a mistake). Twitter is flooded with pro-Putin, anti-vaxx, stolen election, and "only two genders" content. The claim that these ideas are suppressed is so easily debunked (with a quick search) as thoroughly false, that I doubt that those making that claim actually believe it. I don't know if Twitter punishes conservative Twitterers more harshly under similar circumstances, but it is simply and verifiably untrue that conservative content, of any flavour and level of extremism, is not widely disseminated by Twitter. I know that suppression has been a fundamental narrative for the right for some generations now, but like its other incarnations -- "the war on Christmas" and "cancel culture" -- it is just not real.

by pron 4y ago

mojzu 4y ago

I'm not a big Twitter user but am often bombarded with right wing content on other sites like Reddit and Youtube no matter how often I try to tell the site/train the algorithm that it's not content I'm interested in seeing whatsoever, the idea that conservatives are being silenced when I (a left wing Brit) am constantly seeing their content is frankly ridiculous

stiltzkin 4y ago
That depends the subs you are subscribed, I usually get bombarded with left content and big subs are astroturfed by leftist.
reitanqild 4y ago
I think it is an algorithm thing: As a member of NAFO I get bombarded by Pro-Russian views every single time I refresh my timeline it seems, and I never like any of it or follow any of those genocidal maniacs or their cheerleaders :-/
celdon25 4y ago
> the idea that conservatives are being silenced when I (a left wing Brit) am constantly seeing their content is frankly ridiculous It doesn't matter if you're "left wing" or not - The algorithm decided that certain people should be steered toward that content and others away from it. So the content is not reaching people organically or through merit. Rather, you're selected based on a hidden formula that nobody gets to see, and certainly doesn't serve the interests of the viewers or the uploaders. If you don't understand how that is censorship, you're missing the point of the whole show.

ekianjo 4y ago

> that is currently engaged in one of the most deadly wars in history ? you dont have to use hyperbole to make a point.

pron 4y ago
I wasn't (although I'll qualify with "modern history"): https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2022/06/23/ukraine-war-deaths-soldiers-history/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2022/06/23/ukraine-wa...
- ekianjo 4y ago
  If? Since when do we qualify a war as deadly based on linear projections in the future?
  - pron 4y ago
    No projections needed. By intensity it's in the top 25% deadliest already.
    - ekianjo 4y ago
      This statistic is completely irrelevant because we have massive outliers like WW1 and WW2 and then a host of small, proxy conflicts afterwards. You don't make statistics based on mixing apples and oranges together and then making classifications out of it. Plus, that Post article is ridiculous, you would obviously not put conflicts 200 years old like the US-Mexican war next to a conflict with modern weapons which are by nature much more deadly. If we go by this definition then most conflicts these days are in the upper 1% of fatalities compared to the whole of Human history, and that virtually says nothing interesting.
      - pron 4y ago
        First the problem was that it's hyperbole and now that it's too obvious to be interesting? In any event, that statement was true and the fact remains that it is not only probably the most intense of the ongoing fifty or so armed conflicts -- which very much makes it stand out -- it is also among the most deadly in a long time, so I think pointing that out is pertinent, despite your stylistic reservations. Also, you can reach out to Paul Poast if you want further explanation about the conflict: https://www.paulpoast.com/bio-cv https://www.paulpoast.com/bio-cv

sneed-oil 4y ago

Twitter suppressed the NY Post's story on Hunter Biden's laptop right before the 2020 presidential election. Calling a surgeon who performed sex reassignment surgery a criminal is what got Jordan Peterson suspended until he'll remove that tweet. Trump was banned despite never telling anybody to go inside the Capitol building and even posting a video telling his supporters to go home. Milo Yiannopoulos was banned for making fun of an actress. Alex Jones was banned for posting a video where he insulted a CNN journalist. Nick Fuentes was banned for repeated violations but Twitter has never made clear what the relevant tweets were. These were just off the top of my head. I also remember tweets calling for mass reeducation of white people or the eradication of whiteness being allowed.

pron 4y ago
All of these ideas/notions/opinions/stories were very widely disseminated on Twitter to an audience of millions (BTW, the legality of Trump's behaviour, including what exactly he urged his followers to do, is under ongoing investigation). The suppression of the Post's story on Hunter Biden might have been an overreaction, that story itself was all over Twitter (that's how I heard about it). It's possible some tweets "calling for mass reeducation of white people or the eradication of whiteness" were not removed, but neither were tweets with vile racism/misogyny/antisemitism that constantly flood the platform. I assume a claim could be made (although it would be hard to support) that, on average, more conservatives are suspended than progressives for similar behaviour but that still amounts to zero conservative ideas suppressed. On the other hand, there's also a bias in violent acts between conservatives and progressives. If there's any conservative content banned or suppressed, I've yet to see a single example.
- sneed-oil 4y ago
  > If there's any conservative content banned or suppressed, no one has yet to find even a single example. A pretty common conservative opinion is that there are only two genders, but Twitter doesn't allow misgendering
  - pron 4y ago

agensaequivocum 4y ago

Multiple people have been locked out for saying that a man cannot get pregnant. Saying that cutting the healthy breasts of a young girl is child abuse, or saying that giving a child puberty blockers is also child abuse. Stop being so obtuse

pron 4y ago
I don't know the particular circumstances of those sanctions, but all of these opinions have been widely disseminated on Twitter. Exactly none of them have been suppressed, as a quick Twitter search would immediately reveal. I understand that the feeling that conservative/reactionary ideas are suppressed has been an important myth in conservative circles for at least a century (to varying degrees), and that opinion itself is one of those conservative notions so prevalent on Twitter, but as a statement of fact, it is very easily disproved.
rat87 4y ago
So they're claiming things, that are part of being a supportive parent and are not abuse, are abusive. And possibly encouraging harrasment of supporting parents and doctors? Also I'm pretty sure vast majority of those getting top surgery are 18 or older.

celdon25 4y ago

Those topics aren't on the minds of conservatives lately, and if you think they are, you're either out of touch or making your point in bad faith. Since those ideas don't carry weight at the moment, they aren't a liability and therefore there's no reason to censor at this time. You mentioned in another comment that the "censorship myth" is "easily disproved". You might want to re-think your logic, or stop spreading such BS, even if it sounded clever to you.

pron 4y ago
I think you're wrong (e.g. The Federalist, Claremont, and Quillette are pretty much the zeitgeist of the more-extreme-than-mainstream right these days; Claremont pretty much is the pro-Trump/pro-fascist/anti-democratic section of conservative writers), but regardless, could you name a conservative opinion/idea/belief that Twitter does not widely disseminate?
- celdon25 4y ago
  > could you name a conservative opinion/idea/belief that Twitter does not widely disseminate? I do not necessarily endorse or agree with the viewpoints of those who were banned. But some confirmed examples include: QAnon, vaccines, Hunter Biden laptop, use of gender pronouns. Anything Pro-Putin (there's growing support of Putin among conservatives, but I'm not one of them). Claiming that the 2020 election was stolen (where was Twitter in 2016?). Being a member of Proud Boys. Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twitter_suspensions#2022 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twitter_suspensions#2022 Also, accounts like @JamesOKeefeIII banned arbitrarily in retaliation. https://www.thedailybeast.com/project-veritas-founder-james-okeefe-permanently-booted-from-twitter https://www.thedailybeast.com/project-veritas-founder-james-... Meanwhile: https://rdi.org/twitters-dictator-problem/ https://rdi.org/twitters-dictator-problem/ - Same thing happened in India FYI. You should learn to understand that iron and velvet are two sides of the same coin.
  - pron 4y ago
    That some accounts were suspended under specific circumstances does not mean that conservative content is suppressed. Potential bias in moderation policies of specific behaviours/events and the matter of suppressing ideas are two separate issues (although the moderation of the Hunter Biden story, as I mentioned earlier, was probably a mistake). Twitter is flooded with pro-Putin, anti-vaxx, stolen election, and "only two genders" content. The claim that these ideas are suppressed is so easily debunked (with a quick search) as thoroughly false, that I doubt that those making that claim actually believe it. I don't know if Twitter punishes conservative Twitterers more harshly under similar circumstances, but it is simply and verifiably untrue that conservative content, of any flavour and level of extremism, is not widely disseminated by Twitter. I know that suppression has been a fundamental narrative for the right for some generations now, but like its other incarnations -- "the war on Christmas" and "cancel culture" -- it is just not real.