Twitter sparked major controversy on Friday with its decision to ban President Trump from its platform.
Following Trump’s brief suspension following the violence that occurred on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, Twitter announced late on Friday that the president will no longer be able to tweet.
“After a detailed analysis of recent tweets from the @realDonaldTrump account and the context around them – specifically how they are being received and interpreted on and off Twitter – we have permanently suspended the account due to the risk of further incitement to violence,” says the company wrote in a blog post.
TWITTER SUSPENDS ACCOUNT @REALDONALDTRUMP PERMANENTLY
Highlighting two relatively moderate tweets from the president the previous Friday, one of which stated that he would not attend President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration on January 20, the company argued that they should be viewed in a broader context.
“These two Tweets should be read in the context of broader events in the country and in the ways in which the president’s statements can be mobilized by different audiences, including to incite violence, as well as in the context of the pattern of behavior in that report in recent weeks. “said the company.” After evaluating the language of these Tweets against our Violence Glorification policy, we determined that these Tweets violate the Violence Glorification Policy and the user @realDonaldTrump should be immediately suspended from service. “
Trump’s ban on Twitter appeared to be part of what many referred to as a “purification” of users of the social media giant, including former pro-attorney lawyers Lin Wood and Sidney Powell, as well as the former National Security adviser General Michael Flynn.
TWITTER PERMANENTLY SUSPENDS FLYNN, SIDNEY POWELL, SAYS THAT THEY ARE ENGAGED IN ‘HARMFUL ACTIVITY’ RELATED TO QANON
The last time Twitter was at the center of such a storm of censorship was in October, when the tech giant decided to block The New York Post’s account after the newspaper released its bombastic report on Hunter Biden’s foreign business interests during the 2020 presidential campaign.
However, critics of Twitter are pointing out the glaring exceptions the platform seems to have made for some of the most odious and dangerous voices in the world.
Louis Farrakhan, Richard Spencer, Ali Khamenei, Maduro, OJ Simpson have more freedom on Twitter than President Trump (Photo credit: Getty Images)
Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has emerged as one of the most powerful Iranian leaders of the past century and exercises control over all aspects of the country’s government, military and media.
During the 1979 revolution in Iran, Khamenei preached about the overthrow of the shah and resistance to the United States and the western world in an effort to reaffirm Islamic values and avoid any influences that threaten to undermine his autocratic government and his country’s self-sufficiency.
TWITTER SLAMMED FOR NOT ACTING IN CHINESE MEDIA TWEET ALLEGING COVID-19 CAME FROM ‘IMPORTED FROZEN FOOD’
Khamenei repeatedly tweeted inciting violence against the United States and Israel. In July, he promised that the Iranian regime will seek revenge against the United States after the assassination of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran will never forget the martyrdom of Hajj Qasem [sic] Soleimani and will definitely strike a reciprocal blow in the USA [sic], “Khamenei wrote.
AN tweet 2018 that still exists in Khamenei’s aimed at the Jewish State, writing “Our stance against Israel is the same one we always take. #Israel is a malignant cancerous tumor in the West Asia region that must be removed and eradicated: it is possible and it will . “
This week, the ayatollah declared that coronavirus vaccines developed in the United States and the United Kingdom are “banned” in Iran, saying, “They are completely untrustworthy. They are not unlikely to want to infect other nations.”
Although Twitter has acted by removing Khamenei’s anti-vaccine tweet, his account still remains intact.
During the coronavirus pandemic, critics criticized Twitter for its inaction in tweets from Chinese government-controlled accounts posted by state officials and state media that spread misinformation about the virus and its origins.
RUBIO BLASTS TWITTER FOR INACTION IN THE CHINESE OFFICER TWEET WITH AUSTRALIAN SOLDIER DOCTORED IMAGE
A November tweet, for example, from the Chinese advertising channel “People’s Daily, China” said: “All available evidence suggests that # COVID19 did not start in Wuhan, in central China, but can enter China through products frozen food products and their packaging: specialists. “
At the time, Twitter told Fox News that it was analyzing the tweet, but never followed up on a response. This fake tweet remains on the platform.
This week, Twitter initially decided that a tweet from the Chinese embassy in the United States does not violate the platform’s policies, despite publicizing the country’s abuse of Uighur Muslims, who are trapped in concentration camps.
CONSERVATORS ESCAPE TO PARLER FOLLOWING THE PERMANENT SUSPENSION OF TWITTER’S TRUMP
“The study shows that in the process of eradicating extremism, Uigur’s minds [sic] women in Xinjiang have been emancipated and gender equality and reproductive health have been promoted, making them no longer baby-making machines. They are more confident and independent, “said the embassy.
A Twitter spokesman reportedly told several media outlets, “This tweet does not violate our policies.” However, on Friday night, the tweet was no longer visible and was replaced by a message: “This tweet violated Twitter rules.”
Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro, who, according to a report commissioned by the United Nations Human Rights Council, committed extensive and systematic human rights abuses, is a frequent user of Twitter.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APPLICATION
Other controversial figures who still have active Twitter accounts include OJ Simpson, who joined Twitter 25 years after the murder of his wife Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman; white nationalist Richard Spencer; and the well-known anti-Semite Louis Farrakhan.
Twitter did not immediately respond to Fox News’s request for comment.
Brian Flood, Michael Ruiz of Fox News contributed to this report.