Twitter Inc. (NASDAQ: TWTR)
Twitter has temporarily suspended conspiracy theorist Alex Jones for using the social network to share content that incites violence. Jones will not be able to use his “verified” personal account for seven days, a week after he tweeted a link to a video asking his fans to prepare to “act on the enemy” by getting their “battle rifles” ready.
According to Twitter, the tweet by the far-right conspiratorial commentator breached the its rules against inciting violence. The San Francisco, California-based companies joins a list of other tech giants, such as Apple, Spotify, Facebook, and Alphabet, that have taken action on Jones in recent weeks.
The 44-year-old right-wing radio commentator runs a controversial website known as InfoWars, which is devoted to fake news and conspiracy theories. Jones uses his website and his social media accounts to peddle many conspiracy theories, including saying that the Sandy Hook Elementary School mass shooting that happened six years ago was a hoax.
He also believes that the US government carried out the 9/11 attacks, and that Hillary Clinton run a pedophile sex ring in a pizza parlor located in Washington. The move by Twitter on Tuesday means that Jones will not be able to retweet or tweet using his personal account for one week. However, the decision does not affect the Infowars Twitter account, and he can still access his personal account.
Twitter was under increasing media criticism and scrutiny for tolerating Jones and failing to pull down his content. Last week, Chief Executive Officer Jack Dorsey made a series of tweets explaining why his company had not cracked down on Jones and his content.
“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,” Dorsey tweeted.
Apple was the first tech giant to yank Jones off its iTunes store on August 5. Facebook, Spotify, and YouTube then followed with permanent deletions. However, his apps are still available on Google’s Play store and Apple’s App Store.
Jones personal and Infowars Twitter accounts command slightly over 889,000 and 400,000 followers, respectively. In a video posted on the InfoWars website today, he likened his current predicaments with Silicon Valley companies to a “a James Bond movie”. The far-right conservative believes that the tech giants are working with the Chinese government to deter him from telling the truth.
About Twitter
Twitter is global platform for public self-expression and conversation in real time. It provides a network that connects users to people, information, ideas, opinions, and news.
Its services include live commentary, live connections and live conversations. Its application provides social networking services and micro-blogging services through mobile devices and the Internet.
The company can also be used as a marketing tool for businesses. Twitter was founded in 2006 by Jack Dorsey, Evan Williams, Christopher Isaac Stone, Jeremy LaTrasse, and Noah E. Glass. –CNNMoney
