Donald Trump loved his Twitter account, possibly even more than his own children. The president has been a prolific user of the platform for going on a decade, but what started as random tweets that alternated between giving Robert Pattinson advice after being cheated on by Kristen Stewart and birther conspiracy theories about Barack Obama descended into a constant stream of fiery rants that threatened markets and foreign relations. The situation with Trump’s Twitter account, which was already being aggressively labeled for spreading misinformation about the 2020 election, reached a tipping point following the attack on the Capitol last week.
After mounting public and internal pressure over the very real possibility of Trump inciting more violence, Twitter finally banned Trump last Friday, which broke the dam on Google, Apple and Amazon taking aggressive steps to curb a future MAGA insurrection from being planned on their platforms. However, in light of the industry-wide efforts to deplatform the dangerous rhetoric coming from Trump-world, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey is concerned about the “dangerous” precedent that his company and others may have set. While Dorsey ultimately agrees that banning Trump was the right move, he’s worried the situation may have consequences on the “public conversation.” Via Twitter:
This moment in time might call for this dynamic, but over the long term it will be destructive to the noble purpose and ideals of the open internet. A company making a business decision to moderate itself is different from a government removing access, yet can feel much the same. Yes, we all need to look critically at inconsistencies of our policy and enforcement. Yes, we need to look at how our service might incentivize distraction and harm. Yes, we need more transparency in our moderation operations. All this can’t erode a free and open global internet.
After waxing poetic about the virtues of a free and open internet, Dorsey pivoted the discussion into a pitch for… Bitcoin, which was probably not what people were expecting while reading a thread about de-platforming the president of the United States.
You can read Dorsey’s thoughts on banning Trump below:
I believe this was the right decision for Twitter. We faced an extraordinary and untenable circumstance, forcing us to focus all of our actions on public safety. Offline harm as a result of online speech is demonstrably real, and what drives our policy and enforcement above all.
— jack (@jack) January 14, 2021
Having to take these actions fragment the public conversation. They divide us. They limit the potential for clarification, redemption, and learning. And sets a precedent I feel is dangerous: the power an individual or corporation has over a part of the global public conversation.
— jack (@jack) January 14, 2021
This concept was challenged last week when a number of foundational internet tool providers also decided not to host what they found dangerous. I do not believe this was coordinated. More likely: companies came to their own conclusions or were emboldened by the actions of others.
— jack (@jack) January 14, 2021
Yes, we all need to look critically at inconsistencies of our policy and enforcement. Yes, we need to look at how our service might incentivize distraction and harm. Yes, we need more transparency in our moderation operations. All this can’t erode a free and open global internet.
— jack (@jack) January 14, 2021
(Via Jack Dorsey on Twitter)