Trump escalates threats to Twitter after fact check
US President Donald Trump has threatened to regulate or shut down social media companies for stifling conservative voices, a day after Twitter attached a warning to some of his tweets prompting readers to fact check the president’s claims.
Without offering evidence, Trump on Wednesday again accused such platforms of bias, tweeting: “Republicans feel that Social Media Platforms totally silence conservatives voices. We will strongly regulate, or close them down, before we can ever allow this to happen.”
The president, a heavy user of Twitter with more than 80 million followers, added: “Clean up your act, NOW!!!!”
Trump’s threat to shut down platforms like Twitter and Facebook was his strongest yet within a broader conservative backlash against Big Tech. Shares of both companies fell.
Twitter for the first time attached fact-check labels on Trump tweets after he made unsubstantiated claims on Tuesday about mail-in voting.
In a pair of early morning posts on Wednesday, the Republican president again blasted mail-in ballots. Trump falsely claims that mail-in ballots lead to vote fraud and ineligible voters getting ballots.
You might like
Twitter and Facebook declined comment on Trump’s tweets. Asked during Twitter’s annual meeting on Wednesday why the company decided to affix the label to Trump’s mail-in ballot tweets, General Counsel Sean Edgett said decisions about handling misinformation are made as a group.
“We have a group and committee of folks who take a look at these things and make decisions on what’s getting a lot of visibility and traction…,” he said.
"Twitter has now shown that everything we have been saying about them (and their other compatriots) is correct. Big action to follow!"
"— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 27, 2020"
In recent years Twitter has tightened its policies amid criticism that its hands-off approach allowed fake accounts and misinformation to thrive.
Stay informed, daily
Tech companies have been accused of anti-competitive practices and violating user privacy. Apple, Google, Facebook and Amazon face antitrust probes by federal and state authorities and a US congressional panel.
The Internet Association, which includes Twitter and Facebook among its members, said online platforms do not have a political bias and they offer “more people a chance to be heard than at any point in history.”
It was not immediately clear whether Trump has the authority to shut down the companies. The American Civil Liberties Union said the First Amendment of the US Constitution limits any action Trump could take to regulate social media platforms.
Twitter’s rival Facebook left Trump’s post on mail-in ballots on Tuesday untouched.
– Reuters
Want to comment?
Send us an email, making it clear which story you’re commenting on and including your full name (required for publication) and phone number (only for verification purposes). Please put “Reader views” in the subject.
We’ll publish the best comments in a regular “Reader Views” post. Your comments can be brief, or we can accept up to 350 words, or thereabouts.
