The Morning Briefing: Twitter Makes Big Move Into Thought Policing

CEO Jack Dorsey and Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg, attend a Senate (Select) Intelligence Committee hearing in Dirksen Building on September 5, 2018. (Photo By Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call) (CQ Roll Call via AP Images)

First, Congratulations to My Colleagues

After a record-setting traffic month in April here at PJ Media, my colleagues had their most prolific day ever on Tuesday, cranking out more posts than we probably did in a week back when I started. I think I linked to them all. I hope I linked to them all. OH GOD, I PROBABLY DIDN’T LINK TO THEM ALL.

Advertisement

Congratulations to them all for continuing to bring you perspectives on the news that you certainly won’t find in any mainstream media outlets.

And as always, thanks to all of you who keep reading!

It’ll Happen

No doubt I will be accused of overreacting by some, but I’ve been watching this play out for years. 

At times it seems as if Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and Twitter’s Jack Dorsey are engaged in some sort of personal, perverse billionaire fun and trying to see which one can make his platform more heavy-handed when it comes to the freedom of expression of its users. 

Dorsey gets my vote every time, and not just because I use Twitter far more than Facebook. Twitter is forever trying new ways to police speech in the name of “safety,” which is laughable. Dorsey and Co. use the safety angle to position themselves as the arbiters of what words mean and whether they should be classified as “hate speech.” That, in these increasingly wuss-filled times, gets to be the slipperiest of slopes in a hurry, leading to all sorts of unfairness.

More on that in a moment.

Let’s get to today’s twist, which I saw on our sister site Twitchy:

Twitter is continually rolling out new features that absolutely no one asked for, and on Tuesday, Twitter Support announced a limited roll-out on its iOS app of a new experiment: Twitter will apparently scan your tweet for language that could be harmful and put up a prompt to see if you really mean to send it in the heat of the moment.

 

Twitter’s announcement:

Advertisement

The creep factor here cannot be overstated. This is a social media platform monitoring some text, then judging your thoughts and feelings, THEN suggesting you might just want to go in another direction mister or missy. 

Yes, this is only an iOS test at the moment but, trust me, if it’s a lousy, oppressive idea Twitter will stick with it and roll it out to everyone. 

It’s easy to see how quickly Twitter could abuse this. Should you go ahead with a thought they suggested you not, they might just decide to suspend you for that. 

The angry speech will be classified as hate speech and off we go. 

The real problem is that Twitter never applies the hate speech rules equally to liberals and conservatives. Conservatives are routinely suspended for relatively benign things while liberals threaten all sorts of violence on conservatives and are left alone. 

This may not seem important to a lot of people but those of us in conservative media still need social media for a variety of things. Facebook and Twitter are still large drivers of traffic and that’s a fact of life that’s not going to change any time soon. 

It’s important to keep on top of what they’re up to and constantly shed light on the more uncomfortable stuff.
The louder we are, the harder we are to get rid of.

Advertisement

A Note From America

I was out for a bike ride early yesterday near the University of Arizona. Two bicycle cops rolled up next to me at a long red light. None of us were wearing masks and we were only a couple of feet apart. Nice conversation. No weirdness. Quite the contrast with other cities where cops are busting people for social distance violations. Always glad I moved back to Arizona.

Sadly, I also discovered that the place where I buy my bikes and get them worked on was a victim of the shutdown. Closed for good.

Something Not About the Plague

This is a fun account on Twitter for sports fans.

PJM Linktank

VodkaPundit: Maybe It’s Time for a Revolt in This Country so We Can Get Back to the Lifestyles We’ve Worked so Hard to Achieve

California’s Governor Backs Off Politically-Motivated Orange County Beach Closures

Trump Wants Tax Cuts, Lawsuit Indemnification in Next Stimulus Bill

Heckuva speech. [WATCH] Cops Appear to Stand Down after Marine Vet Calls Them Out for Harassing Protesters: ‘I’d Rather Lose My Job Than My Soul’

Lone Star Death Star: Texas-Made Robot Kills Coronavirus with Blasts of Light

They shouldn’t be using Chinese-made anything at this point. Congressman Calls on AG Bill Barr to Ban Cops Using Chinese-Made ‘Trojan Horse’ Drones

Reports: Israel Is Finally Driving Iran Out of Syria

Advertisement

The Cost of ‘A Return to Normalcy’

Monopoly money update: Treasury Department to Borrow Nearly $3 Trillion This Quarter

NY Police Union Says Get the NYPD ‘Out of the Social-Distancing Enforcement Business’

California Becomes the First State to Tap Federal Funds to Pay Unemployment

Oregon Salon Owner Defies Closure Order, Opens for Business, Threatened with $70k Fine

Rural Oregon Sheriff Announces County Businesses Will Reopen. His Statement is Glorious.

Wait, Did Schiff Just Say COVID-19 Deaths Are ‘Casualties’ of His Failure to Remove Trump in Impeachment?!

Everyone should sue Cuomo. Florida Isn’t the Problem. Georgia Isn’t the Problem. Hell, Even California Isn’t the Problem for Once. New York Is the Problem.

See above. Does Cuomo Even Have the Authority to Slap $1000 Fines on People Disobeying His Mask Edict?

And foreign policy. And healthcare. Top Adviser to Joe Biden Admitted Obama and Biden Botched the H1N1 Response

‘Breakthrough’ Found That Could ‘Block Course’ of COVID-19 Infection

Why Are Russian COVID-19 Doctors Suddenly ‘Falling’ Out of Windows?

As Americans Struggle with Layoffs, Federal Employees to Attend Webinar on ‘Institutional Betrayal Trauma’

This kid’s going places. Literally. This 5-Year-Old Boy Was Driving to Buy a Lamborghini Before He Got Foiled by the Cops

Virginia Pastors: Gov’t Is Pushing Christians to Choose Between Sinning against God or Violating the Law

A Quarter of Democrats Want to Replace Joe Biden Over Tara Reade Accusations

Advertisement

No, George Will, Joe Biden Is Not Better Than Trump When It Comes to China. Here’s Why.

Trump Shoots Down #NeverTrump Coronavirus Ad Twisting Reagan’s Message of Hope

Politico Founder Doesn’t Want Justice for Biden, He Wants ‘a Coronation’

Beijing Is Getting Worried. It Should Be

A Modest Proposal for Opening Universities: Some Faculties Should Remain Closed

VIP

Kruiser’s Worst Week Ever: Play Ball or Stop Teasing

Americans Are Opening Up Their Communities—Whether Our Rulers Like It or Not

Ted Cruz Turns His Sights On Hollywood Studios Who Bow to China

NYT: COVID May Have Killed The Political Convention, Too

From the Mothership and Beyond

America, if the Democrats take over: NZ Gov’t Claims It Has The Authority To “Extinguish” Property Rights Of Gun Owners

CO Hemp Farmers Defend Themselves From Home Invaders

Gun Sales Strong, Even With Some Stores Still Ordered Closed

Phyllis Schlafly As I Knew Her

BREAKING: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Is Being Hospitalized

This Is a ‘Closed Issue’: Pelosi Turns on the Spin to Protect Creepy Joe

Chris Cuomo Continues to Lecture Americans On Lockdowns After Breaking Quarantine While COVID Positive

One of America’s Largest Drug Companies Just Issued a Timeline for a Wuhan Coronavirus Vaccine

I’ve said much the same. Tucker: Politicians Who ‘Felt Like Gods’ During Pandemic Don’t Want Country to Reopen

AOC Supports Biden for Reason She Forgot to Fact Check

National Right to Life Endorses Sen. Loeffler in Georgia Senate Race

Advertisement

Rep. Paul Mitchell Files Suit Against Gov. Whitmer’s Executive Orders.         

Newsom Rejects LA Times’ Records Request for Chinese Mask Contract, Gives Absurd Reasoning

So there’s that…Biden Voted to Block Creating the Senate Office That Would Deal With Sexual Harassment Complaints

CNN’s S.E. Cupp Tries to Shame Americans Who Want to Reopen Country, Gets Reality Checked, Big Time

‘The Price is Right’ Welcomes Contestant RuPaul to Raise Money for Abortion

Stunning: Longtime Journo Accidentally Shines an Ugly Light on Media’s Warped Mindset on Tara Reade Claims

Sooooo racist. Michelle Obama Blames These Voters For The Election Of Trump

Liberals never had toys and are always acting out mommy issues. Police In Canada Arrested A Stormtrooper On Star Wars Day Because She Was Carrying A Plastic Blaster

Ban colleges. Poll Finds Most College Students Want To Ban “Threatening Ideas”

UK Scientist Who Championed Lock-Down Orders Broke His Own Advice By Letting His Girlfriend Visit His Home

Report: NY AG Investigating NBC News Over Sexual Assault, Discrimination Claims — Focusing On Suddenly-Departed Chief

Study Claims European Strain Of Coronavirus Is More Infectious Than The Original (But Is It?) (Update: Virologist Says This Looks Shoddy)

All NFL Games To Be Played In The United States. Good.

Oh good, more lines. Now Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand wants to put a bank inside every post office

‘Are you somewhere safe?’ CNN’s ever-breathless Jim Acosta seems upset about how Donald Trump’s speech at Honeywell mask facility ended

Advertisement

Lyft will now let you wait longer for a cheaper fare

The Expendables: Hollywood Background Actors Face Extinction In COVID-19 Era

Bee Me

The Kruiser Kabana

I was in a music mood.

You can eat tacos on Seis de Mayo too because there are no rules anymore. It’s fine.

___

Kruiser Twitter
Kruiser Facebook
PJ Media Senior Columnist and Associate Editor Stephen Kruiser is the author ofDon’t Let the Hippies ShowerandStraight Outta Feelings: Political Zen in the Age of Outrage,” both of which address serious subjects in a humorous way. Monday through Friday he edits PJ Media’s “Morning Briefing.” His columns appear every Tuesday and Friday.

Recommended

Trending on PJ Media Videos

Join the conversation as a VIP Member

Advertisement
Advertisement