Column: Did tech companies go too far in banning President Trump? The answer is no

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President Trump's permanent Twitter ban will provoke an examination of the platform's power, but it's exaggerated.

The spectacle of insurrectionists inside the U.S. Capitol has provoked many supporters of President Trump suddenly to deem themselves ex-supporters. But it’s not only Republican politicians — it’s Big Business.

Throughout the 2016 presidential campaign, Trump’s public outreach always depended more on broadcast and cable TV, which gave him and his rallies more unfiltered airtime than his rival candidates, largely for his entertainment value. Twitter’s curtailing of Trump’s account ramped up gradually. The platform placed labels casting doubt on Trump tweets lying about the COVID-19 pandemic and the November election results. But even insiders considered that too tolerant.

Then there’s the insurrection, its aftermath, and the potential for a repetition. Twitter focused on those factors in its explanation of the ban. It cited two Trump tweets issued Friday: One warned that “the 75,000,000 great American Patriots who voted for me...will not be disrespected or treated unfairly in any way, shape or form!!!” The second announced that he would not be attending the Jan. 20 presidential inauguration of Joe Biden.

 

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hiltzikm They are private companies in a Capitalist government which allows them to remove clients who lie or cause disruption the same as removing someone disruptive or dangerous from a restaurant.

hiltzikm So I'm guessing the question was rhetorical..?

hiltzikm Social media companies didn’t silence Trump. Trump still can hold press conferences and go on his favorite news channels to talk freely. Now he just can’t go on Twitter and Facebook to mislead, incite violence and destroy democracy.

hiltzikm He should have be censured from the beginning.

hiltzikm Nope

hiltzikm Twitter is a business - no different than a religious baker who denies a gay couple a cake or a restaurant kicking out a loud obnoxious guest or no shoes, no shirt, no service...etc. Too far? They should have done it sooner.

hiltzikm I pray to all that is right in this world that the day he leaves the White House news coverage of this man goes Silent. Dead silent.

hiltzikm I think there is some thing in the construction that over rides freedom of speech when you try and over throw our government

hiltzikm 43 Presidents, before him, didn’t use social media. They were able to effectively govern without posting every random thought at 4 in the morning.

hiltzikm Twitter made him king 👑. He's just a stupid thug

hiltzikm No. Big Tech finally took the steps it needed to take several years ago, now. I understand why they didn't, and that hindsight is 20/20, but a lot of the polarization and mainstreaming of the fringe Right by POTUS could have been avoided. Lives would have been saved.

hiltzikm

hiltzikm Tech companies have superpowers and they can make rules as they want to rather than from legislative institution and public goods. Tech companies must be restricted and split

hiltzikm In 2016, Republican Rick Perry tried to warn voters of the dangers of Donald Trump — that, if elected, Trump would become an unchecked demagogue and would lead: “A mob attack on Washington.”

hiltzikm Amy platform where there is chat has moderators who look for infractions of their user rules. Suspensions are a normal part of participating. Trump far exceeded the limits with impunity. That he is gone only a blessing.

hiltzikm No, Congress is doing too little.

hiltzikm True, very true, right now. But I hope in the future main stream media will pI'll back from giving trump the limelight he demands.

hiltzikm No

hiltzikm If Pothead Jack and Zuck the thief was fair in their post scutiny, it would not be of issue. However, their commentary & removal of posts plus freezing accounts is only executed against conservatives to further liberal agendas Ayatollah of Iran has posts saying Death to America

hiltzikm Past presidents never had any issue getting through their message. In fact bush jr was able to get the US into unnessary war vs Iraq

hiltzikm It is a private company and they can shot down anyone that brakes their rules! Even the president who had been promoting false conspiracies theories and claims about fraud during the election, incited to violence and attempted a coup trying to destroy our democracy!

hiltzikm It's Facebook not Hatebook asshole

hiltzikm In a word...no.

hiltzikm Social media interventions are unacceptable lately. A company cannot influence the work of a country’s government by isolating it or trying to have imposed judgments in this regard. It is a real scandal

hiltzikm Trump had already gone to far by inciting violence and now he has to face the consequences DontDropTheSoapDonald

hiltzikm No. Any tolerance of Twitter's intolerance is the same as giving license to discrimination of all types.

hiltzikm

hiltzikm He’s not silenced. If he wants to be presidential he can use official accounts. Whenever Trump screams about his Twitter and uses the words ‘free speech’, replace them with ‘my money’. That account was key to the monetization of his post-presidency and continued abuse of a nation

hiltzikm His every lie you meant!

hiltzikm The rules apply to everyone.

hiltzikm Claro. Que hay que silenciarlo...

hiltzikm Stop it. It was his personal account. It was an abuse that he was even using it to the extent he was as President. It’s amazing how many excuses people have made for his bad behavior his entire life. Trump is not a victim. He’s an abuser. Of everything.

hiltzikm White supremes killed our police brother and they are taking it as no big deal. DISGRACEFUL. He gave the ultimate sacrifice his own life. And they dont even care. God wont forget what you did to our police brother

hiltzikm They may not be able to silence him but, it sure has been quiet since his accounts were banned.

hiltzikm They waited 4 years too long to do it

hiltzikm Then he should stop crying like a baby

hiltzikm Why do people get suspensions, lose their minds and forget that they signed off on terms of service, like everyone else?

hiltzikm They didn't silence him fast enough now look what is happening. Parler should be next.

hiltzikm Well, we did somehow muddle through until just about 10 years ago without social media. However did we manage? He has only used it to bully and water and feed his base into hysteria that brought about Wed.

پاکستان کا تماشا دیکھتے دیکھتے تماشا بنی تماری اپنی دریافت۔۔۔۔۔

Too far?!! He incited an insurrection against the United Stares!! He should be in jail!!

Absolutely Not!

You mean “hell NO”!

If 5 dead people don't answer that question then how can the question be answered?

LasVegasPaco

No. Should have been done years ago.

Too little too late

ChristineIAm Long overdue

I would agree if the companies applied the rules to everyone. Selective censorship is a terrifying slippery slope.

The answer is: yes, stupid.

He should have been banned a long time ago.

El segundo times haaates Trump

Perhaps it is not a good idea to ban Mr. Trump from using social media because then you do not know what he is thinking... rash decisions should never be made.

No

If you’re asking, then the answer is a big fat ummm uhhhh....YES!?!?! ... scene from Pretty Woman, “ big mistake, big!”

No it was the right thing to do

He should be in prison. Any other country would have grabbed him and locked him up by now!!

Just think of tech companies as Christian bakeries and Trump as a gay wedding cake

Noooooo

Send a DM if you need your bills paid

No

No. They have not done enough to stop the terrorist trump

Are you trying to start a civil war?

No

Not exactly, but the are only taking the opportunity to express how much the hate him. He deserves all the most hated president ever.

Word for word - “I know that everyone here will soon be marching over to the capital building to peacefully and patriotically to make your voices heard” - Donald Trump 1/6/21

Nope. Too late.

Stalin would have loved you guys.

Platforms that blocked the terrorist Trump.

Good answer.

Conservatives should ban reading left wing media.

Trump has lost his mind and seems to be using hallucinogens 😂 He will spark war in his country💔

In a word, F ck no.

The answer is actually yes, but whatever floats your goat

It took the corrupt dems take for the big techs to have their allies in control and for Trump to be on his way out. Says they are very afraid of one man 😂 RepealSection230 FakeNews repeal230 FraudSquad

No, he’s inciting violence in a world where democracies are crumbling because of white nationalism. Our democracy is at stake and we need to stop giving a platform to this dangerous sociopath.

Yes.

Yes .. if they did it to him they will do it to you !!

1984IsHere They decide who to ban, to censor, to shut up. They sell citizens' personal data. They collaborate in the mass surveillance by the NSA, which however did not prevent Congress from being raped. They are masters of billions of souls. they sponsor mass denunciation.

FirstAmendment they are protected by private property but they sell users' private data as things.They censor, silence, ban above the law that protects their private property.They are the worst enemies that America has in its bosom. Put them under the law where everyone else is

No, more should be added to the list:

The answer is yes. I wonder if the President was a democrat they would ban him anyway, hard to believe it.

Fuck no! Should have happened long ago!

Aren’t they now publishers ?

the problem is this. Last May Kaepernick directly called for more violence in Portland. He was given $3m and praised. 7 months later, Portland is STILL a warzone with an exponentially higher casualty count than the DC incident. It's not really about violence. doublestandard

Hell no. They should have done it years ago.

🏛🇺🇸🕵️

No

They sell private data of citizens. They collaborate in the masssurveillance of the NSA, the same NSA that did not prevent the invasion of Congress. They educate in the culture of denunciation, in Soviet or Chinese style, without the accuser having responsibility for it.

I don’t think you’re right. You might send the President to bed without supper, no matter how disgraced, but I wouldn’t. Or the White House. But of course, tech didn’t do this. You did.

The answer is YES. If you even consider thinking NO is the answer you’d better stop excisting.

is such a nasty rag

Heck No!!

The internet is given the legal status of a phone line...wherein the provider is not responsible for content...but what happened on Capitol gives them the right to prevent abuse by the instigator.

The answer is yes. But Nazis always say it’s ok to silence uncomfortable voices.

Hannity, Carlson, Levin, FoxNews have brought this on by reporting false information and twisting facts to meet a agenda

The times is a cesspool, the voice of the illegal aliens and criminals.

That TV Star turned new-age Robert E. Lee almost started a fucking Civil War. It's called checks and balances.

Sure. Trump used digital Media to feed on racial and economic biases. He spread fear of the Media, fear of DEMOCRACY and lied about Crucial FACTS: COVID-19 and Election. He distorted facts gave back DISINFORMATION to control the narrative as a Cult Leader for weak minds.

Would they be posing the same question if it were Hitler or Stalin ?

Yes. The answer is no. They took too long.

Dictators & authoritarians don’t get censored, they do the censoring. Pushing people underground has never been good for society.

You could be next if aloud, we are all at risk 🤨☮️☯️

No

If Trump is just an ordinary citizen and Twitter and losing streaks close his account, I think this is a restriction on freedom of speech. However, His extreme emotions and distorted facts bringing the US into the abyss of division and riots. Of course, it should be shut down.

lol

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horrible

The awnser is yes it only more so shows that corruption did happen and prooves it more and more the more they censor the more they proove trump right.

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