On Monday, the latest in a Twitter file was released, with some of the newly released documents showing how members of both the Trump and Biden administrations allegedly pressured Twitter over COVID-19 content moderation. is shown.
Twitter CEO Elon Musk provided journalists with internal company material for the so-called Twitter Files. In a previous article, we reported on how Twitter moderated content in relation to its article on Hunter Biden’s laptop controversy, and how it covered former President Donald Trump’s decision to suspend his account. was included.
Monday’s report was published on Bari Weiss’ website The Free Press via writer David Zweig. In the article, Zweig wrote that the Biden and Trump administrations “directly pressured Twitter executives to moderate pandemic-related content on the platform according to their wishes.”
6. When the pandemic started, the Trump administration was particularly concerned about panic buying, according to the conference memo. They came for “help from tech companies to combat misinformation” about “cracking down on grocery stores.” But . . . there was a run at the grocery store. pic.twitter.com/duzk2I1Y7T
— David Zweig (@davidzweig) December 26, 2022
series of Tweet In a post Zweig posted alongside the Twitter Files publication, he said Michael Kratzios, who served as the White House Chief Technology Officer under Trump, had taken to Twitter and Twitter to “fight misinformation” about the pandemic. He added that he is said to have held meetings with other technology companies.
Photo by Joe Raedle/Taylor Hill/Getty Images
Zweig wrote that one of the topics about the Trump administration was “running a grocery store.” “The problem was that it wasn’t misinformation,” he said.
Ahead of Zweig’s report, Trump praised the Twitter file, saying it had articles that gave credence to his disproven claim that the 2020 presidential election was “stolen” from him.
On Dec. 9, Trump wrote on the Truth Social platform that recent information released at that time was a “revelation” showing evidence that government agencies were “illegally colluding” against him. rice field.
Trump also appeared to suggest that information contained in a Twitter file about possible FBI involvement in Hunter Biden’s story moderation could provide a reason for the US Constitution to be revoked.
“So, now that it’s been revealed that massive and widespread fraud and deception are working closely with big tech companies, the DNC, and the Democratic Party, we’re going to scrap the results of the 2020 presidential election to make sure that the right Declare a winner? New elections?” Trump posted on Truth Social.
He said, “A massive fraud of this kind and scale would allow the termination of all rules, regulations and provisions, even those found in the Constitution.
After backlash against his post, including members of the Republican Party, Trump said on Truth Social that he never called for the end of the Constitution.
The Truth Social post wasn’t the only instance of Trump praising the Twitter file. early this month, rolling stone A text sent by the Trump campaign reportedly related to Trump’s re-election campaign read:
Zweig said he reached out to several tech giants for information about the coronavirus while the Trump administration was in office.
“It wasn’t just Twitter. Google, Facebook, Microsoft and others were present at Trump’s White House meeting,” Zweig said. murmured.
Many of Zweig’s Twitter files report detailed efforts by President Joe Biden’s staff to reduce misinformation about the pandemic and vaccines. He said he was “particularly concerned” about journalist Alex Berenson, who was banned from Twitter for violating the policy.
Berenson sued Twitter and the company settled with the journalist. He was allowed back on the platform and Twitter was forced to disclose internal communications showing that the White House met with his Twitter employee and he allegedly discussed Berenson.
Zweig said journalists aren’t the only ones being moderated by Twitter, with or without government pressure.
“Many medical and public health professionals were also targeted for expressing views that contradict official views or citing findings from accredited academic journals,” Zweig told the Free Press. “As a result, legitimate findings and questions about COVID policy and its consequences have been lost.”
Newsweek We reached out to Trump, Twitter and the White House for comment.
