By: K. Walker
ClashDaily Associate Editor
It’s Wednesday and Alex Jones is already having a really bad week. Check out his latest setback…
Jones has been ditched by multiple platforms almost simultaneously for ‘violations of terms of service’. Facebook, usually rather vague about what the lands you in Facebook jail, openly stated that the pages were removed for ‘glorifying violence’ and ‘hate speech’ — specifically using ‘dehumanizing language to describe people who are transgender, Muslims and immigrants.’
Here is the official statement that was posted by Facebook:
As a result of reports we received, last week, we removed four videos on four Facebook Pages for violating our hate speech and bullying policies. These pages were the Alex Jones Channel Page, the Alex Jones Page, the InfoWars Page and the Infowars Nightly News Page. In addition, one of the admins of these Pages – Alex Jones – was placed in a 30-day block for his role in posting violating content to these Pages.
Since then, more content from the same Pages has been reported to us — upon review, we have taken it down for glorifying violence, which violates our graphic violence policy, and using dehumanizing language to describe people who are transgender, Muslims and immigrants, which violates our hate speech policies.
All four Pages have been unpublished for repeated violations of Community Standards and accumulating too many strikes. While much of the discussion around Infowars has been related to false news, which is a serious issue that we are working to address by demoting links marked wrong by fact checkers and suggesting additional content, none of the violations that spurred today’s removals were related to this.
(Emphasis added)
Note that being booted off of the platforms wasn’t for ‘fake news’ as the Media (D) is portraying it — it was for violating ‘hate speech’ rules.
What is ‘hate speech’ anyway? As we’ve pointed out, Antifa and Louis Farrakhan are still hosted by the same social media platforms that just ousted Jones.
Whatever you think about Alex Jones and InfoWars, the multi-platform banning citing the same ‘violation of terms’ should ring some alarm bells to those of us that are the champions of freedom.
I’ve always said that I’m a free speech absolutist — I’d rather have a racist out there sharing their point of view in public than hiding in the shadows. It’s much easier to denounce and challenge someone’s bigotry that way.
Same goes for nutty conspiracy theorists.
Let’s face it, Alex Jones is an easy target for the New Arbiters of Speech. He’s hated by the left, and shunned by much of the right. Very few would come to his defense.
And now, a rather innocuous platform, the email marketing service, MailChimp, has ditched Jones, too.
You know you’re in trouble when even MailChimp is no longer here for your shit.
As a man who lives his life extremely online, Alex Jones has suffered a deluge of digital setbacks this week. While YouTube, Facebook, Apple, and even Pinterest all took steps to limit the reach of his conspiracy and hate-promoting site InfoWars on their respective platforms, Jones’ terrible, horrible, no good, very bad week isn’t over yet. MailChimp, the email marketing service, today decided to toss a little extra “get bent” onto Jones’ garbage sandwich of a life.
Well, that’s not biased, is it?
Here’s the statement by MailChimp:
BREAKING: MailChimp has also dropped Infowars. Jones just compared his deplatforming to being sent to an "electronic ghetto." pic.twitter.com/b28H5vRUCy
— cristina lópez g. (@crislopezg) August 7, 2018
https://twitter.com/ali/status/1026915419863609345
But despite being booted off of Big Tech hosting sites, Jones is still able to get his message out there. The InfoWars Official app is flying up the rankings in both the Apple Store and the Google Play Store. In the News category, it’s now the fourth most popular app on Apple, sailing past CNN and Fox News. It jumped from 31st to 11th in the Google Play Store in the News category.
Infowars Official, the app named after Alex Jones’ controversial radio talk show, has become the fourth most popular news app in the United States that’s currently available in the iOS App Store, according to public rankings. It was the 47th most popular just two days ago.
The free app, which launched in June, streams live shows and written pieces from Jones and other conservative pundits. It also links to the Infowars store where visitors can buy T-shirts and skincare products. An Android version of the app is available in the Google Play Store; there, it jumped from being the 31st most popular news app to the 11th.
Source: The Verge
https://twitter.com/stevekovach/status/1026798662368800768
The question is — for how long?
How long before the Apple and Google Play stores cite their guidelines to remove the InfoWars app?
Apple’s guidelines page states:
We will reject apps for any content or behavior that we believe is over the line. What line, you ask? Well, as a Supreme Court Justice once said, “I’ll know it when I see it.” And we think that you will also know it when you cross it.
Well, it’s good that it’s not vague or anything…
The Google Play Store’s ‘hate speech’ guidelines are what you would imagine them to be:
We don’t allow apps that promote violence, or incite hatred against individuals or groups based on race or ethnic origin, religion, disability, age, nationality, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or any other characteristic that is associated with systemic discrimination or marginalization.
If you look at those standards, they would probably agree with Don Lemon that calling a black person dumb is racism but take no issue with a mob of white liberals shouting down a black conservative woman for promoting ‘white supremacy’. After all, she’s the hater.
Welcome to the rules of 2018 — where nothing makes sense and the points don’t matter.
