"Twitter Files": Twitter Rigged the COVID Debate

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Facts

  • According to a new batch of "Twitter files" published on Monday by journalist David Zweig, the Biden admin pressured Twitter into banning users for COVID stances that didn’t align with those of the administration.
  • From ordinary users to doctors and experts, Twitter allegedly suppressed, discredited and banned people for questioning vaccine efficacy or tweeting COVID-related information it deemed "misleading," even in cases when CDC data or peer-reviewed studies were provided. Alex Berenson was a notable target that the White House urged Twitter to ban for being an alleged "anti-vaxxer."
  • While most of the focus was on pressure from the Biden admin, according to Zweig, the Trump admin also exerted pressure on Twitter to suppress or elevate information early on in the pandemic, reportedly being particularly concerned about panic buying.
  • This comes as journalist Matt Taibbi released a separate batch of "Twitter Files" on Christmas Eve showing what he called “the FBI acting as doorman to a vast program of social media surveillance and censorship, encompassing agencies across the federal government.” According to Taibbi, the FBI inundated the platform with requests to moderate content, and went to extreme lengths to "validate theories of foreign influence."
  • Per the release, the FBI wasn’t the only agency allegedly attempting to influence Twitter, with the State Department, CIA, and Pentagon among those apparently actively coordinating with Twitter and all major social media platforms.
  • The FBI maintained that it, along with other intelligence agencies, is committed to serving and protecting the American people, and that, “It is unfortunate that conspiracy theorists and others are feeding the American public misinformation.”

Sources: New York Post, Thread Reader App, Daily Mail, and MSN.

Narratives

  • Right narrative, as provided by Newsweek. The US government, intelligence community, and Big Tech clearly colluded behind closed doors to stifle free speech under the pretense of “stopping misinformation.” Now that the mask is off, the FBI and its co-conspirators respond by gaslighting any who dare question the Ministry of Truth.
  • Left narrative, as provided by CNN. Elon Musk seems to be addicted to creating controversy and misleading the public. To deflect from his botched management of Twitter, he's now trying to discredit America's intelligence agencies and fabricate nefarious ties between the FBI and social media platforms that don’t exist.
  • Cynical narrative, as provided by New York Magazine. Though aspects of the Twitter Files have been productive in terms of transparency, Elon Musk is guilty of the same things he has accused companies and journalists of. The Twitter Files are not meant to advance the interests of the public, but the interests of the GOP and right-wing actors — caveat emptor.