Twitter tries to articulate why it won’t ban Donald Trump
Every few weeks or so an online movement reemerges calling for Twitter to ban President Trump because his tweets violate the company’s terms of service. The latest example came when Trump tweeted a bizarre, taunting, and threatening message to North Korea that alluded to launching a nuclear bomb:
North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un just stated that the “Nuclear Button is on his desk at all times.” Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 3, 2018
Despite the threat of violence, Trump’s account remained–and many liberal Twitter users balked at the platform’s double standard. Today, Twitter published a blog post explaining the company’s reasoning.
Twitter is here to serve and help advance the global, public conversation. Elected world leaders play a critical role in that conversation because of their outsized impact on our society.
Blocking a world leader from Twitter or removing their controversial Tweets, would hide important information people should be able to see and debate. It would also not silence that leader, but it would certainly hamper necessary discussion around their words and actions.
In short, Trump isn’t blocked because his actions dictate global conversation, and blocking the president on Twitter isn’t going to stop him from saying what he wants to say. You can read the entire blog post here.
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