<p>In the aftermath of the coup in Myanmar, United States has been in touch with Japan and India and sees both countries having "better contact" with the military of that country. &nbsp;A senior state department official briefing the reporters on the issue said, "We have certainly been in frequent contact with our like-minded allies and partners in the region."</p>

<p>Pointing out in response to a specific question on the 2 countries, official said, "You mentioned Japan and India. Those are – we’re having daily ongoing conversations with them, and we certainly appreciate that some other countries have better contact with Burmese military than we do. So we’re continuing those conversations. "</p>

<p>Last year saw high profile visit of the Indian foreign secretary Harsh Shringla and Indian Army Chief MM Naravane to the country. India also handed over INS Sindhuvir to the country. It was commissioned as UMS Minye Theinkhathu and inducted on the 73rs anniversary of the Myanmar Navy in 2020.</p>

<p>This is the first time India has given a submarine to any country and shows growing defence cooperation between the 2 neighbouring countries. The Indian side has been training Myanmese Naval personnel. Last year, Indian and Myanmar naval undertook joint exercises IMNEX 2019 in Bay of Bengal.</p>

<p>Asked if US is in touch with "members of the NLD party or Aung San Suu Kyi herself", the official of the state department said, "No we’ve not been able to do that. &nbsp;Our understanding is that most of the senior officials are under house arrest in the NLD leadership as well as some of the regional government figures and civil society figures." Explaining, "But we’ve not been able to reach them. &nbsp;We’ll obviously continue to try to do that."</p>

<p>Monday saw a bloodless coup in the country, with the civilian government led by Aung San Suu Kyi being overthrown. The development raised widespread concern, with strong reactions from Washington, Delhi and Tokyo, among others.</p>


In the aftermath of the coup in Myanmar, United States has been in touch with Japan and India and sees both countries having "better contact" with the military of that country.

In the aftermath of the coup in Myanmar, United States has been in touch with Japan and India and sees both countries having "better contact" with the military of that country. A senior state department official briefing the reporters on the issue said, "We have certainly been in frequent contact with our like-minded allies and partners in the region." Pointing out in response to a specific question on the 2 countries, official said, "You mentioned Japan and India. Those are – we’re having daily ongoing conversations with them, and we certainly appreciate that some other countries have better contact with Burmese military than we do. So we’re continuing those conversations. " Last year saw high profile visit of the Indian foreign secretary Harsh Shringla and Indian Army Chief MM Naravane to the country. India also handed over INS Sindhuvir to the country. It was commissioned as UMS Minye Theinkhathu and inducted on the 73rs anniversary of the Myanmar Navy in 2020. This is the first time India has given a submarine to any country and shows growing defence cooperation between the 2 neighbouring countries. The Indian side has been training Myanmese Naval personnel. Last year, Indian and Myanmar naval undertook joint exercises IMNEX 2019 in Bay of Bengal. Asked if US is in touch with "members of the NLD party or Aung San Suu Kyi herself", the official of the state department said, "No we’ve not been able to do that. Our understanding is that most of the senior officials are under house arrest in the NLD leadership as well as some of the regional government figures and civil society figures." Explaining, "But we’ve not been able to reach them. We’ll obviously continue to try to do that." Monday saw a bloodless coup in the country, with the civilian government led by Aung San Suu Kyi being overthrown. The development raised widespread concern, with strong reactions from Washington, Delhi and Tokyo, among others.

US in touch with Japan, India in the aftermath of Myanmar coup

<p>Twitter on Tuesday slapped a second "hateful conduct" warning in just days on a message from Turkey's interior minister condemning the LGBT community's role in month-long student protests.</p>

<p>Turkey has been hit by weeks of rallies across major campuses against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's appointment of a loyalist to head Istanbul's prestigious Bogazici University at the start of the year.</p>

<p>Police detained 159 students after storming a protest staged inside the fenced-off campus on Monday night.</p>

<p>AFP reporters saw plain clothes police make more arrests as students tried to march along a central street in the capital Ankara on Tuesday.</p>

<p>The standoff over the rector gained a new dimension when someone hung a poster near his office depicting Islam's holiest site with pictures of the LGBT rainbow flag last week.</p>

<p>Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu tweeted on Saturday that "four LGBT freaks" had been detained for "inciting hatred" with their poster.</p>

<p>Twitter hid that message under a warning that it violated the platform's "rules about hateful conduct" -- the same thing it did to tweets from former US President Donald Trump before banning him last month.</p>

<p>Soylu posted a new message on Tuesday asking why Turkey should "tolerate LGBT deviants".</p>

<p>Twitter hid that message under another "hateful content" warning that requires an extra click to see what the minister said.</p>

<p>The offending messages also cannot be retweeted.</p>

<p>Twitter has been one of the few platforms to resist a new Turkish requirement for social media giants to appoint local representatives who can quickly follow court orders to take down contentious posts.</p>

<p>Turkey hit Twitter with an advertising ban as punishment last month.</p>

<p>Twitter's continued resistance could make it effectively inaccessible inside Turkey should officials follow through on threats to cut off its bandwidth by 90 percent in May.<br />
&nbsp;</p>


Twitter on Tuesday slapped a second "hateful conduct" warning in just days on a message from Turkey's interior minister condemning the LGBT community's role in month-long student protests.

Twitter on Tuesday slapped a second "hateful conduct" warning in just days on a message from Turkey's interior minister condemning the LGBT community's role in month-long student protests. Turkey has been hit by weeks of rallies across major campuses against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's appointment of a loyalist to head Istanbul's prestigious Bogazici University at the start of the year. Police detained 159 students after storming a protest staged inside the fenced-off campus on Monday night. AFP reporters saw plain clothes police make more arrests as students tried to march along a central street in the capital Ankara on Tuesday. The standoff over the rector gained a new dimension when someone hung a poster near his office depicting Islam's holiest site with pictures of the LGBT rainbow flag last week. Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu tweeted on Saturday that "four LGBT freaks" had been detained for "inciting hatred" with their poster. Twitter hid that message under a warning that it violated the platform's "rules about hateful conduct" -- the same thing it did to tweets from former US President Donald Trump before banning him last month. Soylu posted a new message on Tuesday asking why Turkey should "tolerate LGBT deviants". Twitter hid that message under another "hateful content" warning that requires an extra click to see what the minister said. The offending messages also cannot be retweeted. Twitter has been one of the few platforms to resist a new Turkish requirement for social media giants to appoint local representatives who can quickly follow court orders to take down contentious posts. Turkey hit Twitter with an advertising ban as punishment last month. Twitter's continued resistance could make it effectively inaccessible inside Turkey should officials follow through on threats to cut off its bandwidth by 90 percent in May.

Twitter flags Turkish minister's 'hateful' LGBT posts

<p>International Cricket Council (ICC) took to Twitter and shared a collage of Pakistan cricketer Hasan Ali's dismissal on Day 3 of the first Test against South Africa.&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>ALSO READ:&nbsp;</strong><a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/bcci-president-sourav-ganguly-undergoes-successful-angioplasty-two-more-stents-implanted-359907" hreflang="en">BCCI President Sourav Ganguly undergoes successful angioplasty; two more stents implanted</a></p>

<p>The image on the left was a zoomed version where the rattled stumps behind Ali were not visible and the one on the right was the actual photo which showed the uprooted middle stump. ICC captioned it: “Your profile picture vs the full picture.”</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Your profile picture vs the full picture 😄<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PAKvSA?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PAKvSA</a> <a href="https://t.co/jMw1niI0co">pic.twitter.com/jMw1niI0co</a></p>
— ICC (@ICC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ICC/status/1354724056457596932?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 28, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p>The Twitteratis could not keep calm and erupted with mixed reactions. While most of them enjoyed the humour the post had to offer, few netizens were not pleased with the cricket board's decision to troll a cricketer.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Hasan Ali after see this tweet:- <a href="https://t.co/Fw3Bg6FwLh">pic.twitter.com/Fw3Bg6FwLh</a></p>
— ABDULLAH NEAZ (@abdullah_neaz) <a href="https://twitter.com/abdullah_neaz/status/1354741004885057541?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 28, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Shame on <a href="https://twitter.com/ICC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ICC</a><br />
Such a sluggish mindset and thoughts 👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎</p>
— Jaam Shahid 🇵🇰 (@JaamShahid11) <a href="https://twitter.com/JaamShahid11/status/1354766042745233408?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 28, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Hasan Ali after see this trolling tweet from ICC:- <a href="https://t.co/4bsMNqmum7">pic.twitter.com/4bsMNqmum7</a></p>
— ABDULLAH NEAZ (@abdullah_neaz) <a href="https://twitter.com/abdullah_neaz/status/1354729700673765377?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 28, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Lame Joke of the decade</p>
— Shazziya Mehmood (@shaziyaaM) <a href="https://twitter.com/shaziyaaM/status/1354724714904776705?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 28, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Your profile picture vs the full picture 😄<a href="https://twitter.com/ICC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ICC</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PAKvSA?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PAKvSA</a> <a href="https://t.co/vCgGu8szhM">pic.twitter.com/vCgGu8szhM</a></p>
— 🇵🇰🇵🇰🇵🇰🇵🇰🇵🇰🇵🇰🇵🇰🇵🇰 (@love_pakistan9) <a href="https://twitter.com/love_pakistan9/status/1354745508493979648?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 28, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p>The Day 3 ended well for Pakistan as Pakistan's spinners Yasir Shah and Nauman Ali grabbed three wickets in the span of ten runs to halt South Africa's fightback in the first Test in Karachi on Thursday.</p>

<p>Despite Markram and van der Dussen's 158-run stand, Yasir and Nauman reduced South Africa to 187-4 at the close, which means the visitors are effectively 29-4 with two days to play.</p>

<p>Earlier, Pakistan was bowled out for 378 in the morning, Shah leading the tailenders with an unbeaten 38 valuable runs.</p>


International Cricket Council (ICC) took to Twitter and shared a collage of Pakistan cricketer Hasan Ali's dismissal on Day 3 of the first Test against South Africa.

International Cricket Council (ICC) took to Twitter and shared a collage of Pakistan cricketer Hasan Ali's dismissal on Day 3 of the first Test against South Africa. ALSO READ: BCCI President Sourav Ganguly undergoes successful angioplasty; two more stents implanted The image on the left was a zoomed version where the rattled stumps behind Ali were not visible and the one on the right was the actual photo which showed the uprooted middle stump. ICC captioned it: “Your profile picture vs the full picture.” Your profile picture vs the full picture 😄#PAKvSA pic.twitter.com/jMw1niI0co — ICC (@ICC) January 28, 2021 × The Twitteratis could not keep calm and erupted with mixed reactions. While most of them enjoyed the humour the post had to offer, few netizens were not pleased with the cricket board's decision to troll a cricketer. Hasan Ali after see this tweet:- pic.twitter.com/Fw3Bg6FwLh — ABDULLAH NEAZ (@abdullah_neaz) January 28, 2021 × Shame on @ICC Such a sluggish mindset and thoughts 👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎 — Jaam Shahid 🇵🇰 (@JaamShahid11) January 28, 2021 × Hasan Ali after see this trolling tweet from ICC:- pic.twitter.com/4bsMNqmum7 — ABDULLAH NEAZ (@abdullah_neaz) January 28, 2021 × Lame Joke of the decade — Shazziya Mehmood (@shaziyaaM) January 28, 2021 × Your profile picture vs the full picture 😄@ICC #PAKvSA pic.twitter.com/vCgGu8szhM — 🇵🇰🇵🇰🇵🇰🇵🇰🇵🇰🇵🇰🇵🇰🇵🇰 (@love_pakistan9) January 28, 2021 × The Day 3 ended well for Pakistan as Pakistan's spinners Yasir Shah and Nauman Ali grabbed three wickets in the span of ten runs to halt South Africa's fightback in the first Test in Karachi on Thursday. Despite Markram and van der Dussen's 158-run stand, Yasir and Nauman reduced South Africa to 187-4 at the close, which means the visitors are effectively 29-4 with two days to play. Earlier, Pakistan was bowled out for 378 in the morning, Shah leading the tailenders with an unbeaten 38 valuable runs.

'Your profile picture vs the full picture': ICC trolls Pakistan cricketer Hasan Ali

<p>The European Commission has told Google, Facebook, Twitter and Microsoft to continue monthly reports on their efforts to tackle fake news, especially on COVID-19, for another six months.</p>

<p>Social media and online platforms have come under fire globally over the spread of fake news, leading to calls for regulators to force them to do more or face cumbersome rules.</p>

<p>The companies, together with TikTok and advertisers, have signed the European Union`s code of practice to tackle the spread of disinformation on their platforms, and had to submit reports on their efforts during an initial six-month period.</p>

<p>The reports will continue for another six months because of their relevance during the virus pandemic, the EU executive said.</p>

<p>The companies have been told to provide more data on how disinformation spreads during the coronavirus crisis and on the granular impact of their actions in EU countries.</p>

<p>"The pandemic has become a breeding ground for false claims and conspiracy theories and platforms are important amplifiers of this type of messages," Commission Vice-</p>

<p>President for Values and Transparency Vera Jourova said in a statement.</p>

<p>"We must continue working together to improve our fight with disinformation, but we need more transparency and better effort from the online platforms," she said.</p>


The European Commission has told Google, Facebook, Twitter and Microsoft to continue monthly reports on their efforts to tackle fake news, especially on COVID-19, for another six months.

The European Commission has told Google, Facebook, Twitter and Microsoft to continue monthly reports on their efforts to tackle fake news, especially on COVID-19, for another six months. Social media and online platforms have come under fire globally over the spread of fake news, leading to calls for regulators to force them to do more or face cumbersome rules. The companies, together with TikTok and advertisers, have signed the European Union`s code of practice to tackle the spread of disinformation on their platforms, and had to submit reports on their efforts during an initial six-month period. The reports will continue for another six months because of their relevance during the virus pandemic, the EU executive said. The companies have been told to provide more data on how disinformation spreads during the coronavirus crisis and on the granular impact of their actions in EU countries. "The pandemic has become a breeding ground for false claims and conspiracy theories and platforms are important amplifiers of this type of messages," Commission Vice- President for Values and Transparency Vera Jourova said in a statement. "We must continue working together to improve our fight with disinformation, but we need more transparency and better effort from the online platforms," she said.

EU tells Google, Facebook and Twitter to extend fake news watch, COVID-19 in focus

<p>Youtube on Wednesday said that it was banning former US President Donald Trump from the video-sharing platform indefinitely. This is another blow to the former Commander-in-Chief after numerous social media platforms banished him. Youtube's decision has come a week after it confirmed that it would extend ban on Trump's channel.</p>

<p>"In light of concerns about the ongoing potential for violence, the Donald J Trump channel will remain suspended," a YouTube spokesperson told Politico.</p>

<p>The Google-owned firm has faced some criticism over its slow response following the violence in Washington, as well as the proliferation of conspiracy theories on the platform.</p>

<p>Youtube also said that it will stop Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani from monetizing his content on the platform. Giuliani's account would be barred from the Partner Program -- &nbsp;which allows creators to make money off their videos</p>

<p>The 76-year-old has posted videos titled "The Biden Crime Family's Payoff Scheme" and "Election Theft of the Century" to his channel, which has around 600,000 subscribers.</p>

<p>Number of social media platforms including Twitter have taken action against Trump after the January 6 Capitol Hill violence. Donald Trump was under fire for his tweets throughout his presidency but the criticism and condemnation grew louder after Capitol Hill attack. On January 6, Trump addressed his supporters and asked them to 'march' on the Capitol Building in which the legislature was gathered to certify the President-elect Joe Biden' victory in US Presidential election 2020.</p>

<p>The violence at the Capitol Hill kickstarted an impeachment process that ended with Donald Trump being the only US President ever to be impeached twice.</p>

<p><strong>(With AFP inputs)</strong></p>


Youtube on Wednesday said that it was banning former US President Donald Trump from the video-sharing platform indefinitely. This is another blow to the former Commander-in-Chief after numerous social media platforms banished him.

Youtube on Wednesday said that it was banning former US President Donald Trump from the video-sharing platform indefinitely. This is another blow to the former Commander-in-Chief after numerous social media platforms banished him. Youtube's decision has come a week after it confirmed that it would extend ban on Trump's channel. "In light of concerns about the ongoing potential for violence, the Donald J Trump channel will remain suspended," a YouTube spokesperson told Politico. The Google-owned firm has faced some criticism over its slow response following the violence in Washington, as well as the proliferation of conspiracy theories on the platform. Youtube also said that it will stop Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani from monetizing his content on the platform. Giuliani's account would be barred from the Partner Program -- which allows creators to make money off their videos The 76-year-old has posted videos titled "The Biden Crime Family's Payoff Scheme" and "Election Theft of the Century" to his channel, which has around 600,000 subscribers. Number of social media platforms including Twitter have taken action against Trump after the January 6 Capitol Hill violence. Donald Trump was under fire for his tweets throughout his presidency but the criticism and condemnation grew louder after Capitol Hill attack. On January 6, Trump addressed his supporters and asked them to 'march' on the Capitol Building in which the legislature was gathered to certify the President-elect Joe Biden' victory in US Presidential election 2020. The violence at the Capitol Hill kickstarted an impeachment process that ended with Donald Trump being the only US President ever to be impeached twice. (With AFP inputs)

Youtube suspends Donald Trump from platform indefinitely

<p>Twitter recently launched "Birdwatch", a community-based programme aimed at battling misinformation.</p>

<p>As part of this move, people can now identify information in Tweets which they believe could be misleading, and then offer notes that provide context.</p>

<p>In the pilot phase of this project, notes may be accessed on a separate website - Birdwatch.<br />
<br />
Envisaged as a forum, participants may rate how helpful notes added by other contributors are.</p>

<p>Twitter claims that so far, Birdwatch is being kept separate from Twitter.</p>

<p>"These notes are being intentionally kept separate from Twitter for now, while we build Birdwatch and gain confidence that it produces context people find helpful and appropriate," Twitter said in a statement on Monday.</p>

<p><strong>Also read:&nbsp;</strong><a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/twitter-suspends-account-linked-to-khameneis-website-clarifies-its-fake-and-not-his-358646" hreflang="en">Twitter suspends account linked to Khamenei's website, clarifies it's fake and not his</a></p>

<p>To kick off the Birdwatch programme, 1,000 users in the US will participate.</p>

<p>"Eventually we aim to make notes visible directly on Tweets for the global Twitter audience when there is consensus from a broad and diverse set of contributors," Twitter said.</p>

<p>"We believe this approach has the potential to respond quickly when misleading information spreads, adding context that people trust and find valuable'', Twitter added.</p>

<p>All data on Birdwatch will be available publicly, and will also be downloadable.</p>

<p><strong>Also read:&nbsp;</strong><a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/elon-musk-offers-100-million-to-develop-a-technology-on-twitter-358446" hreflang="en">Elon Musk offers $100 million to develop a technology on Twitter</a></p>

<p>So far, Twitter has undertaken 100 interviews across users to understand how much support Birdwatch has.</p>

<p>"As we develop algorithms that power Birdwatch such as reputation and consensus systems we aim to publish that code publicly in the Birdwatch Guide," the company claimed.<br />
&nbsp;</p>


Twitter recently launched "Birdwatch", a community-based programme aimed at battling misinformation. As part of this move, people can now identify information in Tweets which they believe could be misleading, and then offer notes that provide context.

Twitter recently launched "Birdwatch", a community-based programme aimed at battling misinformation. As part of this move, people can now identify information in Tweets which they believe could be misleading, and then offer notes that provide context. In the pilot phase of this project, notes may be accessed on a separate website - Birdwatch. Envisaged as a forum, participants may rate how helpful notes added by other contributors are. Twitter claims that so far, Birdwatch is being kept separate from Twitter. "These notes are being intentionally kept separate from Twitter for now, while we build Birdwatch and gain confidence that it produces context people find helpful and appropriate," Twitter said in a statement on Monday. Also read: Twitter suspends account linked to Khamenei's website, clarifies it's fake and not his To kick off the Birdwatch programme, 1,000 users in the US will participate. "Eventually we aim to make notes visible directly on Tweets for the global Twitter audience when there is consensus from a broad and diverse set of contributors," Twitter said. "We believe this approach has the potential to respond quickly when misleading information spreads, adding context that people trust and find valuable'', Twitter added. All data on Birdwatch will be available publicly, and will also be downloadable. Also read: Elon Musk offers $100 million to develop a technology on Twitter So far, Twitter has undertaken 100 interviews across users to understand how much support Birdwatch has. "As we develop algorithms that power Birdwatch such as reputation and consensus systems we aim to publish that code publicly in the Birdwatch Guide," the company claimed.

Twitter launches 'Birdwatch' - a forum to battle misinformation

India is the world's second-biggest online market. But is the Indian Govt doing enough to regulate the big players? Why India does not have laws to regulate the big tech?

Gravitas: No rules to regulate big tech?

Australia wants tech giants to pay for news. In response, Google has threatened to disable search in Australia. While Facebook says it will not allow users to share news items. Palki Sharma Upadhyay tells you more about Big Tech's bullying in Australia.

Gravitas: Australia wants Google to pay for news; Google threatens to turn off search

Big tech is now on target of lawmakers around the world. Tech giants have immense power over what you get to read or watch. Moreover, they have been accused of avoiding billions in taxes and killing competition. Palki Sharma Upadhyay tells you more.

Gravitas: Big tech is 'avoiding $2.8 billion in tax' in countries like India

<p>For four years, the tweets of Donald Trump dictated headlines worldwide. By using Twitter, Trump was able to bypass the traditional media, evade their critical questions, even incite a mob that would storm the US Capitol. Only when big tech took a stand, and banned the former president, did Donald Trump stop spreading lies about vote-rigging.</p>

<p>This tells a lot about power of tech giants. They influence the hearts and minds of voters worldwide. They do not consider themselves the media. They call themselves tech platforms. But they profit from the media.</p>

<p>In 2020, the pandemic shut down the world and shuttered many businesses. But, big tech remained immune to the virus. Earning big money from a combination of revenue streams. Tech giants added more than 160 billion dollars to their market value last year.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The news industry is bleeding money. According to Pricewaterhouse Coopers, the global newspaper industry's combined advertising and circulation revenue will fall drastically from 108 billion dollars in 2019, to 86 billion dollars in 2024.</p>

<p>Tech companies are leveraging a major shift in user habits. People turn to social media for breaking news now. And digital news feeds have replaced the front pages of newspapers. The big tech pulls this off by exploiting loopholes in tax laws.</p>

<p>The organization for economic co-operation and development has made an assessment. It believes governments worldwide have lost 240 billion dollars in taxes from big tech.</p>

<p>The developing world has suffered the biggest losses.&nbsp;</p>

<p>According to NGO Action Aid; &nbsp;Google, Facebook and Microsoft should be paying more corporation tax to developing nations. They are missing out on 2.8 billion dollars in tax revenues. Action aid says countries like India, Indonesia, Brazil, Nigeria and Bangladesh have the highest tax gaps.</p>

<p>Beyond tax avoidance, an acquisition spree has allowed big tech to monopolise the market.</p>

<p>Since 2005, Google's parent company Alphabet along with Apple, Amazon and Facebook have acquired 385 companies in the US.</p>

<p>Alphabet alone has bought out 185 companies. This buying spree had caught the attention of regulators worldwide.</p>

<p>US Federal Trade Commission, the EU, and Australia's Competition and Consumer Commission scrutinizing the deals. Access to large volumes of free content, outdated tax laws and relentless acquisitions have turned big tech into big media.</p>

<p>Global regulators need a new legal toolbox to break their monopoly.</p>

<p>There is a need to level the playing field and make the giants pay.</p>


For four years, the tweets of Donald Trump dictated headlines worldwide. By using Twitter, Trump was able to bypass the traditional media, evade their critical questions, even incite a mob that would storm the US Capitol.

For four years, the tweets of Donald Trump dictated headlines worldwide. By using Twitter, Trump was able to bypass the traditional media, evade their critical questions, even incite a mob that would storm the US Capitol. Only when big tech took a stand, and banned the former president, did Donald Trump stop spreading lies about vote-rigging. This tells a lot about power of tech giants. They influence the hearts and minds of voters worldwide. They do not consider themselves the media. They call themselves tech platforms. But they profit from the media. In 2020, the pandemic shut down the world and shuttered many businesses. But, big tech remained immune to the virus. Earning big money from a combination of revenue streams. Tech giants added more than 160 billion dollars to their market value last year. The news industry is bleeding money. According to Pricewaterhouse Coopers, the global newspaper industry's combined advertising and circulation revenue will fall drastically from 108 billion dollars in 2019, to 86 billion dollars in 2024. Tech companies are leveraging a major shift in user habits. People turn to social media for breaking news now. And digital news feeds have replaced the front pages of newspapers. The big tech pulls this off by exploiting loopholes in tax laws. The organization for economic co-operation and development has made an assessment. It believes governments worldwide have lost 240 billion dollars in taxes from big tech. The developing world has suffered the biggest losses. According to NGO Action Aid; Google, Facebook and Microsoft should be paying more corporation tax to developing nations. They are missing out on 2.8 billion dollars in tax revenues. Action aid says countries like India, Indonesia, Brazil, Nigeria and Bangladesh have the highest tax gaps. Beyond tax avoidance, an acquisition spree has allowed big tech to monopolise the market. Since 2005, Google's parent company Alphabet along with Apple, Amazon and Facebook have acquired 385 companies in the US. Alphabet alone has bought out 185 companies. This buying spree had caught the attention of regulators worldwide. US Federal Trade Commission, the EU, and Australia's Competition and Consumer Commission scrutinizing the deals. Access to large volumes of free content, outdated tax laws and relentless acquisitions have turned big tech into big media. Global regulators need a new legal toolbox to break their monopoly. There is a need to level the playing field and make the giants pay.

Time to break monopoly of Big Tech?

The monopoly of a big tech company is a clear danger to everyone involved. Do you know as to how many companies they have swallowed in the past few years? WION brings you a report.

Big tech killing competition with acquisitions?

The Twitter account of Iran's Supreme Leader on Friday carried the image of a golfer resembling former President Donald Trump apparently being targeted by a drone, vowing revenge over the killing of a top Iranian general in a U.S. drone attack.

WION Dispatch: Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei posts Trump-like golfer image

<p>Social networking platform Twitter on Thursday said that it has&nbsp;locked the account of China's US&nbsp;embassy for a tweet that defended China's policies in the Xinjiang region after it violated the firm's policy against "dehumanisation".</p>

<p>The Chinese Embassy account, @ChineseEmbinUS, posted a tweet this month that said that Uighur women were no longer "baby-making machines," citing a study reported by state-backed newspaper China Daily.</p>

<p>Later, the same article was reposted with a different caption. "Study shows the population change in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region involves the overall improvement in population quality. An increasing number of youths chose to spend more time and energy on personal development," the post by the Chinese embassy in the US reads.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Study shows the population change in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region involves the overall improvement in population quality. An increasing number of youths chose to spend more time and energy on personal development. <a href="https://t.co/lSn5EpCJFK">https://t.co/lSn5EpCJFK</a> <a href="https://t.co/g7asRRDrd6">pic.twitter.com/g7asRRDrd6</a></p>
— Chinese Embassy in US (@ChineseEmbinUS) <a href="https://twitter.com/ChineseEmbinUS/status/1347224755485749249?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 7, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p>Twitter's suspension of the embassy's account came a day after the Trump administration, in its final hours, accused China of committing genocide in&nbsp;Xinjiang, a finding endorsed by the incoming Biden administration.</p>

<p>The Biden administration did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Twitter's move.</p>

<p>"We've taken action on the Tweet you referenced for violating our policy against dehumanization, where it states: We prohibit the dehumanisation of a group of people based on their religion, caste, age, disability, serious disease, national origin, race, or ethnicity," a Twitter spokesperson said on Thursday.</p>

<p>Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/china-sanctions-pompeo-trump-officials-for-violating-sovereignty-358146" hreflang="en">China sanctions Pompeo, Trump officials for violating 'sovereignty'</a></p>

<p>The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a e-mailed request for comment. Twitter is blocked in China but is an increasingly favoured platform by China's diplomats and state media.</p>

<p>China has repeatedly rejected accusations of abuse in its&nbsp;Xinjiang&nbsp;region, where a United Nations panel has said at least 1 million Uighurs and other Muslims had been detained in camps.</p>

<p>Last year, a report by German researcher Adrian Zenz published by the Washington-based Jamestown Foundation think tank accused China of using forced sterilization, forced abortion and coercive family planning against minority Muslims. The Chinese foreign ministry said the allegations were groundless and false.</p>

<p>Twitter's move also follows the removal of the account of former U.S. president Donald Trump, which had 88 million followers, citing the risk of violence after his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol this month.</p>

<p>Twitter had locked Trump's account, asking for deletion of some tweets, before restoring it and then removing it altogether after the former president violated the platform's policies again.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>


Social networking platform Twitter on Thursday said that it has locked the account of China's US embassy for a tweet that defended China's policies in the Xinjiang region after it violated the firm's policy against "dehumanisation".

Social networking platform Twitter on Thursday said that it has locked the account of China's US embassy for a tweet that defended China's policies in the Xinjiang region after it violated the firm's policy against "dehumanisation". The Chinese Embassy account, @ChineseEmbinUS, posted a tweet this month that said that Uighur women were no longer "baby-making machines," citing a study reported by state-backed newspaper China Daily. Later, the same article was reposted with a different caption. "Study shows the population change in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region involves the overall improvement in population quality. An increasing number of youths chose to spend more time and energy on personal development," the post by the Chinese embassy in the US reads. Study shows the population change in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region involves the overall improvement in population quality. An increasing number of youths chose to spend more time and energy on personal development. https://t.co/lSn5EpCJFK pic.twitter.com/g7asRRDrd6 — Chinese Embassy in US (@ChineseEmbinUS) January 7, 2021 × Twitter's suspension of the embassy's account came a day after the Trump administration, in its final hours, accused China of committing genocide in Xinjiang, a finding endorsed by the incoming Biden administration. The Biden administration did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Twitter's move. "We've taken action on the Tweet you referenced for violating our policy against dehumanization, where it states: We prohibit the dehumanisation of a group of people based on their religion, caste, age, disability, serious disease, national origin, race, or ethnicity," a Twitter spokesperson said on Thursday. Also read: China sanctions Pompeo, Trump officials for violating 'sovereignty' The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a e-mailed request for comment. Twitter is blocked in China but is an increasingly favoured platform by China's diplomats and state media. China has repeatedly rejected accusations of abuse in its Xinjiang region, where a United Nations panel has said at least 1 million Uighurs and other Muslims had been detained in camps. Last year, a report by German researcher Adrian Zenz published by the Washington-based Jamestown Foundation think tank accused China of using forced sterilization, forced abortion and coercive family planning against minority Muslims. The Chinese foreign ministry said the allegations were groundless and false. Twitter's move also follows the removal of the account of former U.S. president Donald Trump, which had 88 million followers, citing the risk of violence after his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol this month. Twitter had locked Trump's account, asking for deletion of some tweets, before restoring it and then removing it altogether after the former president violated the platform's policies again.

Twitter locks account of China's US embassy over Xinjiang-related tweet

<p>A video game creator came up with a quirky way to catch Elon Musk’s attention on Twitter - by reminding him everyday. But after 154 attempts, his efforts paid off.</p>

<p>He did not only receive a response from Elon Musk, but also a green light for the video game he’s working on.<br />
<br />
Lyubomir Vladimirov, an independent game developer wanted to develop a game inspired by SpaceX - using Tesla cars, and the aesthetic of their satellites.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Dear Elon,<br />
I'm a game dev. and I am making a game about colonizing Mars with you and SpaceX in it. If you think it's cool, all I need is the "Go ahead" to use your name and Logos.<br />
<br />
I will post this every day for a year or until I get a Yes or a No!<br />
154 / 365</p>
— Lyubomir Vladimirov (@lvladimirovBG) <a href="https://twitter.com/lvladimirovBG/status/1349129814628773888?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 12, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p>However, getting such permissions require time, and paperwork. He skipped through that step by reaching out to Musk on Twitter. To everyone’s surprise, Musk responded to the developer, and gave him the affirmation he needed, saying that “we probably won’t sue you”.</p>

<p>Vladimirov had promised to publish the same tweet everyday for 365 days, till he got Musk’s attention.<br />
<br />
This is what the developer’s tweet said - “Dear Elon. I am a game developer and I am making a game about the colonization of Mars with you and SpaceX. If you think it's cool, all I need is a 'go ahead' to use your name and logos. I will post this every day for a year or until I get a 'yes' or a 'no'. 154/365 ”.</p>

<p>He continued to tweet the same everyday for 154 days, and now he can rest easy.</p>

<p>Musk responded to him with the following -&nbsp; "You can steal our name / logos and we probably won't sue you”.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">You can steal our name/logos &amp; we probably won’t sue you</p>
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1349265937392930816?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 13, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p>Soon after finding out that he received the permission, the developer promised to give a major part of the game’s profits to SpaceX.<br />
<br />
“I want to give 80% of the profits from the game to SpaceX. In that way, the game will not only serve the important purpose of entertaining people and arousing their interest in Mars, but will also help Elon Musk and SpaceX to achieve this”, his tweet said.</p>

<p>While waiting for Musk’s green signal, Vladimirov continued to work on the game, the preview of which can be watched below.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Btw it doesn't always go as planned :D<br />
I recorded in full screen for better quality of the fail.<br />
More fails coming soon :D <a href="https://t.co/0H4UdkC96e">pic.twitter.com/0H4UdkC96e</a></p>
— Lyubomir Vladimirov (@lvladimirovBG) <a href="https://twitter.com/lvladimirovBG/status/1350664213904154625?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 17, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>


A video game creator came up with a quirky way to catch Elon Musk’s attention on Twitter - by reminding him everyday. But after 154 attempts, his efforts paid off.

A video game creator came up with a quirky way to catch Elon Musk’s attention on Twitter - by reminding him everyday. But after 154 attempts, his efforts paid off. He did not only receive a response from Elon Musk, but also a green light for the video game he’s working on. Lyubomir Vladimirov, an independent game developer wanted to develop a game inspired by SpaceX - using Tesla cars, and the aesthetic of their satellites. Dear Elon, I'm a game dev. and I am making a game about colonizing Mars with you and SpaceX in it. If you think it's cool, all I need is the "Go ahead" to use your name and Logos. I will post this every day for a year or until I get a Yes or a No! 154 / 365 — Lyubomir Vladimirov (@lvladimirovBG) January 12, 2021 × However, getting such permissions require time, and paperwork. He skipped through that step by reaching out to Musk on Twitter. To everyone’s surprise, Musk responded to the developer, and gave him the affirmation he needed, saying that “we probably won’t sue you”. Vladimirov had promised to publish the same tweet everyday for 365 days, till he got Musk’s attention. This is what the developer’s tweet said - “Dear Elon. I am a game developer and I am making a game about the colonization of Mars with you and SpaceX. If you think it's cool, all I need is a 'go ahead' to use your name and logos. I will post this every day for a year or until I get a 'yes' or a 'no'. 154/365 ”. He continued to tweet the same everyday for 154 days, and now he can rest easy. Musk responded to him with the following - "You can steal our name / logos and we probably won't sue you”. You can steal our name/logos & we probably won’t sue you — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 13, 2021 × Soon after finding out that he received the permission, the developer promised to give a major part of the game’s profits to SpaceX. “I want to give 80% of the profits from the game to SpaceX. In that way, the game will not only serve the important purpose of entertaining people and arousing their interest in Mars, but will also help Elon Musk and SpaceX to achieve this”, his tweet said. While waiting for Musk’s green signal, Vladimirov continued to work on the game, the preview of which can be watched below. Btw it doesn't always go as planned :D I recorded in full screen for better quality of the fail. More fails coming soon :D pic.twitter.com/0H4UdkC96e — Lyubomir Vladimirov (@lvladimirovBG) January 17, 2021 ×

Elon Musk responds to game developer who prodded him with the same Tweet for 22 weeks

<p>Actor and film producer Russell Crowe hit back at a disparaging Twitter post about the 2003 period war drama `Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World.`<br />
<br />
Fox News reported that the 56-year-old actor was mocked by a user who shared a photo from the 2003 Oscar-winning film and wrote a sarcastic caption." Lots of folk complaining about lack of sleep during the Pandemic," the Twitter user wrote.<br />
<br />
"May I recommend Master And Commander starring the usually captivating, attention-grabbing Russell Crowe," he wrote."I`ve never made it past the ten-minute mark. You`re welcome. And thanks Russell."<br />
<br />
As reported by Fox News, several days later, Crowe, who has starred in other Oscar-winning films such as `Gladiator,` `A Beautiful Mind` and `The Insider,` responded to the remark by defending the movie and highlighting the people behind it.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.wionews.com/entertainment/hollywood/news-justin-timberlake-confirms-he-and-wife-jessica-biel-welcomed-second-baby-in-2020-reveals-name-on-ellen-degeneres-show-357410" hreflang="en">Justin Timberlake confirms he and wife Jessica Biel welcomed second baby in 2020, reveals name on Ellen Degeneres' show</a><br />
<br />
The star began his clap-back, "That`s the problem with kids these days. No focus." "Peter Weirs film is brilliant. An exacting, detail-oriented, epic tale of fidelity to Empire &amp; service, regardless of the cost. Incredible cinematography by Russell Boyd &amp; a majestic soundtrack.<br />
<br />
Definitely an adults movie."Crowe highlighted the film`s co-writer and director, Peter Weir, whose nomination for best director made up one of the 10 Academy Awards the film was nominated for. Boyd, meanwhile, took home one of the two awards the movie actually won, for best cinematography.<br />
<br />
Richard King won the other Oscar for best sound editing. As per Fox News, `Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World` was based on three novels by Patrick O`Brian that made up the Aubrey-Maturin series.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.wionews.com/entertainment/hollywood/news-zack-snyder-reveals-his-version-of-justice-league-is-not-a-series-357404" hreflang="en">Zack Snyder reveals his version of 'Justice League' is not a series</a><br />
<br />
The film tells the story of Crowe`s Jack Aubrey, a British naval captain in the Napoleonic Wars. When his ship is nearly destroyed by a French privateer vessel, Aubrey launches a daring pursuit in an attempt to prevent the more heavily armoured ship from plundering a British whaling fleet near the Galapagos Islands.<br />
<br />
Crowe was one of the few faces in Hollywood to appear in movie theatres in 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic by way of his latest thriller, `Unhinged.`</p>


Actor and film producer Russell Crowe hit back at a disparaging Twitter post about the 2003 period war drama `Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World.` Fox News reported that the 56-year-old actor was mocked by a user who shared a photo from the 2003 Oscar-winning film and wrote a sarcastic caption.

Actor and film producer Russell Crowe hit back at a disparaging Twitter post about the 2003 period war drama `Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World.` Fox News reported that the 56-year-old actor was mocked by a user who shared a photo from the 2003 Oscar-winning film and wrote a sarcastic caption." Lots of folk complaining about lack of sleep during the Pandemic," the Twitter user wrote. "May I recommend Master And Commander starring the usually captivating, attention-grabbing Russell Crowe," he wrote."I`ve never made it past the ten-minute mark. You`re welcome. And thanks Russell." As reported by Fox News, several days later, Crowe, who has starred in other Oscar-winning films such as `Gladiator,` `A Beautiful Mind` and `The Insider,` responded to the remark by defending the movie and highlighting the people behind it. Justin Timberlake confirms he and wife Jessica Biel welcomed second baby in 2020, reveals name on Ellen Degeneres' show The star began his clap-back, "That`s the problem with kids these days. No focus." "Peter Weirs film is brilliant. An exacting, detail-oriented, epic tale of fidelity to Empire & service, regardless of the cost. Incredible cinematography by Russell Boyd & a majestic soundtrack. Definitely an adults movie."Crowe highlighted the film`s co-writer and director, Peter Weir, whose nomination for best director made up one of the 10 Academy Awards the film was nominated for. Boyd, meanwhile, took home one of the two awards the movie actually won, for best cinematography. Richard King won the other Oscar for best sound editing. As per Fox News, `Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World` was based on three novels by Patrick O`Brian that made up the Aubrey-Maturin series. Zack Snyder reveals his version of 'Justice League' is not a series The film tells the story of Crowe`s Jack Aubrey, a British naval captain in the Napoleonic Wars. When his ship is nearly destroyed by a French privateer vessel, Aubrey launches a daring pursuit in an attempt to prevent the more heavily armoured ship from plundering a British whaling fleet near the Galapagos Islands. Crowe was one of the few faces in Hollywood to appear in movie theatres in 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic by way of his latest thriller, `Unhinged.`

Russell Crowe claps back at Twitter troll who criticised 'Master and Commander', 'Kids these days'

<p>In a first, a few days after Twitter launched a new Twitter account <strong>'@PresElectBiden' </strong>for the incoming US President <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/joe-biden">Joe Biden</a>, the social media platform has done the same for the Vice-President's husband.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/kamala-harris">Kamala Harris'</a> husband Douglas Emhoff will be the first Second Gentleman in the history of the US. Harris recently made history by becoming the first woman Vice President and first South Asian, African-American VP of the US.&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/entertainment/joe-biden-kamala-harris-drop-inaugural-playlist-featuring-beyonce-dua-lipa-more-357296" hreflang="en">Joe Biden, Kamala Harris drop inaugural playlist featuring Beyonce, Dua Lipa &amp; more</a></strong></p>

<p>Now, her husband, too, has made history by becoming the first-ever 'Second Gentleman' of the country. This is also the first time Twitter has launched an official account for the partner of the VP.</p>

<p>Emhoff's new Twitter account's bio reads "Future Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff. Devoted dad. Proud husband to Vice President-elect Harris."</p>

<p><strong>Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-vice-president-elect-kamala-harris-gets-covid-19-vaccine-353218" hreflang="en">US Vice President-elect Kamala Harris gets COVID-19 vaccine</a></strong></p>

<p>The incoming President also gave a warm welcome to Emhoff — along with the VP and FLOTUS — through his first tweet on his new official account.</p>

<p>"While you're here, follow @FLOTUSBiden @SenKamalaHarris @SecondGentleman and @Transition46," he tweeted.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Folks — This will be the account for my official duties as President. At 12:01 PM on January 20th, it will become <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a>. Until then, I'll be using <a href="https://twitter.com/JoeBiden?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JoeBiden</a>. And while you're here, follow <a href="https://twitter.com/FLOTUSBiden?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FLOTUSBiden</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/SenKamalaHarris?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SenKamalaHarris</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/SecondGentleman?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SecondGentleman</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/Transition46?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Transition46</a>.</p>
— President-elect Biden (@PresElectBiden) <a href="https://twitter.com/PresElectBiden/status/1349918127413407747?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 15, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p>Biden will be sworn in as the new US President in an inauguration ceremony on January 20 and the outgoing President&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a> will be surrendering the control of the White House on the same day.</p>

<p>The 56-year-old has left his private law practice to focus on his role at the White House, and had described it as an 'honour' to be able to serve as the Second Gentleman of the US.&nbsp;</p>

<p>"I think it would be an incredible honour… I’m going to hopefully work on things like access to justice and access to opportunity and access to the American dream."</p>


In a first, a few days after Twitter launched a new Twitter account '@PresElectBiden' for the incoming US President Joe Biden, the social media platform has done the same for the Vice-President's husband.

In a first, a few days after Twitter launched a new Twitter account '@PresElectBiden' for the incoming US President Joe Biden, the social media platform has done the same for the Vice-President's husband. Kamala Harris' husband Douglas Emhoff will be the first Second Gentleman in the history of the US. Harris recently made history by becoming the first woman Vice President and first South Asian, African-American VP of the US. Also read| Joe Biden, Kamala Harris drop inaugural playlist featuring Beyonce, Dua Lipa & more Now, her husband, too, has made history by becoming the first-ever 'Second Gentleman' of the country. This is also the first time Twitter has launched an official account for the partner of the VP. Emhoff's new Twitter account's bio reads "Future Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff. Devoted dad. Proud husband to Vice President-elect Harris." Also read| US Vice President-elect Kamala Harris gets COVID-19 vaccine The incoming President also gave a warm welcome to Emhoff — along with the VP and FLOTUS — through his first tweet on his new official account. "While you're here, follow @FLOTUSBiden @SenKamalaHarris @SecondGentleman and @Transition46," he tweeted. Folks — This will be the account for my official duties as President. At 12:01 PM on January 20th, it will become @POTUS. Until then, I'll be using @JoeBiden. And while you're here, follow @FLOTUSBiden @SenKamalaHarris @SecondGentleman and @Transition46. — President-elect Biden (@PresElectBiden) January 15, 2021 × Biden will be sworn in as the new US President in an inauguration ceremony on January 20 and the outgoing President Donald Trump will be surrendering the control of the White House on the same day. The 56-year-old has left his private law practice to focus on his role at the White House, and had described it as an 'honour' to be able to serve as the Second Gentleman of the US. "I think it would be an incredible honour… I’m going to hopefully work on things like access to justice and access to opportunity and access to the American dream."

Kamala Harris' husband appears as '@SecondGentleman' on Twitter before Inauguration

<p>Jack Dorsey, Twitter’s chief executive, was working remotely on a private island in French Polynesia frequented by celebrities escaping the paparazzi when a phone call interrupted him Jan. 6.</p>

<p>On the line was Vijaya Gadde, Twitter’s top lawyer and safety expert, with an update from the real world. She said she and other company executives had decided to lock President Donald Trump’s account, temporarily, to prevent him from posting statements that might provoke more violence after a mob stormed the U.S. Capitol that day.</p>

<p>Dorsey was concerned about the move, said two people with knowledge of the call. For four years, he had resisted demands by liberals and others that Twitter terminate Trump’s account, arguing that the platform was a place where world leaders could speak, even if their views were heinous. But he had delegated moderation decisions to Gadde, 46, and usually deferred to her — and he did so again.</p>

<p>Dorsey, 44, did not make his misgivings public. The next day, he liked and shared several tweets urging caution against a permanent ban of Trump. Then, over the next 36 hours, Twitter veered from lifting Trump’s suspension to shutting down his account permanently, cutting off the president from a platform he had used to communicate, unfiltered, with not just his 88 million followers but the world.</p>

<p><strong>Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/trump-to-leave-washington-on-morning-of-bidens-inauguration-357019" hreflang="en">Trump to leave Washington on morning of Biden’s inauguration</a></strong></p>

<p>The decision was a punctuation mark on the Trump presidency that immediately drew accusations of political bias and fresh scrutiny of the tech industry’s power over public discourse. Interviews with a dozen current and former Twitter insiders over the past week opened a window into how it was made — driven by a group of Dorsey’s lieutenants who overcame their boss’ reservations, but only after a deadly rampage at the Capitol.</p>

<p>Having lifted the suspension the next day, Twitter monitored the response to Trump’s tweets across the internet, and executives briefed Dorsey that Trump’s followers had seized on his latest messages to call for more violence. In one post on the alternative social networking site Parler, members of Twitter’s safety team saw a Trump fan urge militias to stop President-elect Joe Biden from entering the White House and to fight anyone who tried to halt them. The potential for more real-world unrest, they said, was too high.</p>

<p>Twitter was also under pressure from its employees, who had for years agitated to remove Trump from the service, as well as lawmakers, tech investors and others. But while more than 300 employees signed a letter saying Trump’s account must be stopped, the decision to bar the president was made before the letter was delivered to executives, two of the people said.</p>

<p><strong>Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/a-farewell-to-the-trump-aesthetic-357182" hreflang="en">A farewell to the Trump aesthetic</a></strong></p>

<p>On Wednesday, Dorsey alluded to the tensions inside Twitter. In a string of 13 tweets, he wrote that he did “not celebrate or feel pride in our having to ban @realDonaldTrump” because “a ban is a failure of ours ultimately to promote healthy conversation.”</p>

<p>But, Dorsey added, “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.”</p>

<p>Dorsey, Gadde and the White House did not respond to requests for comment.</p>

<p>Since Trump was barred, many of Dorsey’s concerns about the move have been realized. Twitter has been embroiled in a furious debate over tech power and the companies’ lack of accountability.</p>

<p>Lawmakers such as Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., have railed against Twitter, while Silicon Valley venture capitalists, First Amendment scholars and the American Civil Liberties Union have also criticized the company. At the same time, activists around the world have accused Twitter of following a double standard by cutting off Trump but not autocrats elsewhere who use the platform to bully opponents.</p>

<p><strong>Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/suspension-of-trumps-twitter-account-is-problematic-angela-merkel-356052" hreflang="en">Suspension of Trump's Twitter account is 'problematic': Angela Merkel</a></strong></p>

<p>“This is a phenomenal exercise of power to de-platform the president of the United States,” said Evelyn Douek, a lecturer at Harvard Law School who focuses on online speech. “It should set off a broader reckoning.”</p>

<p>Trump, who joined Twitter in 2009, was a boon and bane for the company. His tweets brought attention to Twitter, which sometimes struggled to attract new users. But his false assertions and threats online also caused critics to say the site enabled him to spread lies and provoke harassment.</p>

<p>Many of Twitter’s more than 5,400 employees opposed having Trump on the platform. In August 2019, shortly after a gunman killed more than 20 people at a Walmart in El Paso, Twitter called a staff meeting to discuss how the gunman, in an online manifesto, had echoed many of the views that Trump posted on Twitter.</p>

<p>At the meeting, called a “Flock Talk,” some employees said Twitter was “complicit” by giving Trump a megaphone to “dog whistle” to his supporters, two attendees said. The employees implored executives to make changes before more people got hurt.</p>

<p>Over time, Twitter became more proactive on political content. In October 2019, Dorsey ended all political advertising on the site, saying he worried such ads had “significant ramifications that today’s democratic structure may not be prepared to handle.”</p>

<p>But Dorsey, a proponent of free speech, declined to take down world leaders’ posts because he considered them newsworthy. Since Twitter announced that year that it would give greater leeway to world leaders who broke its rules, the company had removed their tweets only once: Last March, it deleted messages from the presidents of Brazil and Venezuela that promoted false cures for the coronavirus. Dorsey opposed the removals, a person with knowledge of his thinking said.</p>

<p>Dorsey pushed for an in-between solution: appending labels to tweets by world leaders if the posts violated Twitter’s policies. In May, when Trump tweeted inaccurate information about mail-in voting, Dorsey gave the go-ahead for Twitter to start labeling the president’s messages.</p>

<p>After the Nov. 3 election, Trump tweeted that it had been stolen from him. Within a few days, Twitter had labeled about 34% of his tweets and retweets, according to a New York Times tally.</p>

<p>Then came the Capitol storming.</p>

<p>On Jan. 6, as Congress met to certify the election, Twitter executives celebrated their acquisition of Ueno, a branding and design firm. Dorsey, who has often gone on retreats, had traveled to the South Pacific island, said the people with knowledge of his location.</p>

<p>When Trump used Twitter to lash out at Vice President Mike Pence and question the election result, the company added warnings to his tweets. Then, as violence erupted at the Capitol, people urged Twitter and Facebook to take Trump offline entirely.</p>

<p>That led to virtual discussions among some of Dorsey’s lieutenants. The group included Gadde, a lawyer who had joined Twitter in 2011; Del Harvey, vice president of trust and safety; and Yoel Roth, head of site integrity. Harvey and Roth had helped build the company’s responses to spam, harassment and election interference.</p>

<p>The executives decided to suspend Trump because his comments appeared to incite the mob, said the people with knowledge of the discussions. Gadde then called Dorsey, who was not pleased, they said.</p>

<p>Trump was not barred completely. If he deleted several tweets that had stoked the mob, there would be a 12-hour cooling-off period. Then he could post again.</p>

<p>After Twitter locked Trump’s account, Facebook did the same. Snapchat, Twitch and others also placed limits on Trump.</p>

<p>But Dorsey was not sold on a permanent ban of Trump. He emailed employees the next day, saying it was important for the company to remain consistent with its policies, including letting a user return after a suspension.</p>

<p>Many workers, fearing that history would not look kindly upon them, were dissatisfied. Several invoked IBM’s collaboration with the Nazis, said current and former Twitter employees, and started a petition to immediately remove Trump’s account.</p>

<p>That same day, Facebook barred Trump through at least the end of his term. But he returned to Twitter that evening with a video saying there would be a peaceful transition of power.</p>

<p>By the next morning, though, Trump was back at it. He tweeted that his base would have a “GIANT VOICE” and that he would not attend the Jan. 20 inauguration.</p>

<p>Twitter’s safety team immediately saw Trump fans, who had been saying the president abandoned them, post about further unrest, said the people with knowledge of the matter. In a Parler message that the safety team reviewed, one user said anyone who opposed “American Patriots” like himself should leave Washington or risk physical harm during the inauguration.</p>

<p>The safety team began drafting an analysis of the tweets and whether they constituted grounds for kicking off Trump, the people said.</p>

<p>Around noon in San Francisco that day, Dorsey called in for an employee meeting. Some pressed him on why Trump was not permanently barred.</p>

<p>Dorsey repeated that Twitter should be consistent with its policies. But he said he had drawn a line in the sand that the president could not cross or Trump would lose his account privileges, people with knowledge of the event said.</p>

<p>After the meeting, Dorsey and other executives agreed that Trump’s tweets that morning — and the responses they had provoked — had crossed that line, the people said. The employee letter asking for Trump’s removal was later delivered, they said.</p>

<p>Within hours, Trump’s account was gone, except for an “Account suspended” label. He tried tweeting from the @POTUS account, which is the official account of the U.S. president, as well as others. But at every turn, Twitter thwarted him by pulling down the messages.</p>

<p>Some Twitter employees, fearing the wrath of Trump’s supporters, have now set their Twitter accounts to private and removed mentions of their employer from online biographies, four people said. Several executives were assigned personal security.</p>

<p>Twitter has also broadened its crackdown on accounts promoting violence. Over the weekend, it removed more than 70,000 accounts that pushed the QAnon conspiracy theory, which posits that Trump is fighting a cabal of Satan-worshipping pedophiles.</p>

<p>On Wednesday, employees gathered virtually to discuss the decision to bar Trump, two attendees said. Some were grateful that Twitter had taken action, while others were eager to leave the Trump era behind. Many were emotional; some cried.</p>

<p>That afternoon, Trump returned again to Twitter, this time using the official @WhiteHouse account to share a video saying he condemned violence — but also denouncing what he called restrictions on free speech. Twitter allowed the video to remain online.</p>

<p>An hour later, Dorsey tweeted his discomfort about the removal of Trump’s online accounts. It “sets a precedent I feel is dangerous: the power an individual or corporation has over a part of the global public conversation,” he wrote.</p>

<p>But, he concluded, “everything we learn in this moment will better our effort, and push us to be what we are: one humanity working together.”</p>


Jack Dorsey, Twitter’s chief executive, was working remotely on a private island in French Polynesia frequented by celebrities escaping the paparazzi when a phone call interrupted him Jan.

Jack Dorsey, Twitter’s chief executive, was working remotely on a private island in French Polynesia frequented by celebrities escaping the paparazzi when a phone call interrupted him Jan. 6. On the line was Vijaya Gadde, Twitter’s top lawyer and safety expert, with an update from the real world. She said she and other company executives had decided to lock President Donald Trump’s account, temporarily, to prevent him from posting statements that might provoke more violence after a mob stormed the U.S. Capitol that day. Dorsey was concerned about the move, said two people with knowledge of the call. For four years, he had resisted demands by liberals and others that Twitter terminate Trump’s account, arguing that the platform was a place where world leaders could speak, even if their views were heinous. But he had delegated moderation decisions to Gadde, 46, and usually deferred to her — and he did so again. Dorsey, 44, did not make his misgivings public. The next day, he liked and shared several tweets urging caution against a permanent ban of Trump. Then, over the next 36 hours, Twitter veered from lifting Trump’s suspension to shutting down his account permanently, cutting off the president from a platform he had used to communicate, unfiltered, with not just his 88 million followers but the world. Also read| Trump to leave Washington on morning of Biden’s inauguration The decision was a punctuation mark on the Trump presidency that immediately drew accusations of political bias and fresh scrutiny of the tech industry’s power over public discourse. Interviews with a dozen current and former Twitter insiders over the past week opened a window into how it was made — driven by a group of Dorsey’s lieutenants who overcame their boss’ reservations, but only after a deadly rampage at the Capitol. Having lifted the suspension the next day, Twitter monitored the response to Trump’s tweets across the internet, and executives briefed Dorsey that Trump’s followers had seized on his latest messages to call for more violence. In one post on the alternative social networking site Parler, members of Twitter’s safety team saw a Trump fan urge militias to stop President-elect Joe Biden from entering the White House and to fight anyone who tried to halt them. The potential for more real-world unrest, they said, was too high. Twitter was also under pressure from its employees, who had for years agitated to remove Trump from the service, as well as lawmakers, tech investors and others. But while more than 300 employees signed a letter saying Trump’s account must be stopped, the decision to bar the president was made before the letter was delivered to executives, two of the people said. Also read| A farewell to the Trump aesthetic On Wednesday, Dorsey alluded to the tensions inside Twitter. In a string of 13 tweets, he wrote that he did “not celebrate or feel pride in our having to ban @realDonaldTrump” because “a ban is a failure of ours ultimately to promote healthy conversation.” But, Dorsey added, “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.” Dorsey, Gadde and the White House did not respond to requests for comment. Since Trump was barred, many of Dorsey’s concerns about the move have been realized. Twitter has been embroiled in a furious debate over tech power and the companies’ lack of accountability. Lawmakers such as Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., have railed against Twitter, while Silicon Valley venture capitalists, First Amendment scholars and the American Civil Liberties Union have also criticized the company. At the same time, activists around the world have accused Twitter of following a double standard by cutting off Trump but not autocrats elsewhere who use the platform to bully opponents. Also read| Suspension of Trump's Twitter account is 'problematic': Angela Merkel “This is a phenomenal exercise of power to de-platform the president of the United States,” said Evelyn Douek, a lecturer at Harvard Law School who focuses on online speech. “It should set off a broader reckoning.” Trump, who joined Twitter in 2009, was a boon and bane for the company. His tweets brought attention to Twitter, which sometimes struggled to attract new users. But his false assertions and threats online also caused critics to say the site enabled him to spread lies and provoke harassment. Many of Twitter’s more than 5,400 employees opposed having Trump on the platform. In August 2019, shortly after a gunman killed more than 20 people at a Walmart in El Paso, Twitter called a staff meeting to discuss how the gunman, in an online manifesto, had echoed many of the views that Trump posted on Twitter. At the meeting, called a “Flock Talk,” some employees said Twitter was “complicit” by giving Trump a megaphone to “dog whistle” to his supporters, two attendees said. The employees implored executives to make changes before more people got hurt. Over time, Twitter became more proactive on political content. In October 2019, Dorsey ended all political advertising on the site, saying he worried such ads had “significant ramifications that today’s democratic structure may not be prepared to handle.” But Dorsey, a proponent of free speech, declined to take down world leaders’ posts because he considered them newsworthy. Since Twitter announced that year that it would give greater leeway to world leaders who broke its rules, the company had removed their tweets only once: Last March, it deleted messages from the presidents of Brazil and Venezuela that promoted false cures for the coronavirus. Dorsey opposed the removals, a person with knowledge of his thinking said. Dorsey pushed for an in-between solution: appending labels to tweets by world leaders if the posts violated Twitter’s policies. In May, when Trump tweeted inaccurate information about mail-in voting, Dorsey gave the go-ahead for Twitter to start labeling the president’s messages. After the Nov. 3 election, Trump tweeted that it had been stolen from him. Within a few days, Twitter had labeled about 34% of his tweets and retweets, according to a New York Times tally. Then came the Capitol storming. On Jan. 6, as Congress met to certify the election, Twitter executives celebrated their acquisition of Ueno, a branding and design firm. Dorsey, who has often gone on retreats, had traveled to the South Pacific island, said the people with knowledge of his location. When Trump used Twitter to lash out at Vice President Mike Pence and question the election result, the company added warnings to his tweets. Then, as violence erupted at the Capitol, people urged Twitter and Facebook to take Trump offline entirely. That led to virtual discussions among some of Dorsey’s lieutenants. The group included Gadde, a lawyer who had joined Twitter in 2011; Del Harvey, vice president of trust and safety; and Yoel Roth, head of site integrity. Harvey and Roth had helped build the company’s responses to spam, harassment and election interference. The executives decided to suspend Trump because his comments appeared to incite the mob, said the people with knowledge of the discussions. Gadde then called Dorsey, who was not pleased, they said. Trump was not barred completely. If he deleted several tweets that had stoked the mob, there would be a 12-hour cooling-off period. Then he could post again. After Twitter locked Trump’s account, Facebook did the same. Snapchat, Twitch and others also placed limits on Trump. But Dorsey was not sold on a permanent ban of Trump. He emailed employees the next day, saying it was important for the company to remain consistent with its policies, including letting a user return after a suspension. Many workers, fearing that history would not look kindly upon them, were dissatisfied. Several invoked IBM’s collaboration with the Nazis, said current and former Twitter employees, and started a petition to immediately remove Trump’s account. That same day, Facebook barred Trump through at least the end of his term. But he returned to Twitter that evening with a video saying there would be a peaceful transition of power. By the next morning, though, Trump was back at it. He tweeted that his base would have a “GIANT VOICE” and that he would not attend the Jan. 20 inauguration. Twitter’s safety team immediately saw Trump fans, who had been saying the president abandoned them, post about further unrest, said the people with knowledge of the matter. In a Parler message that the safety team reviewed, one user said anyone who opposed “American Patriots” like himself should leave Washington or risk physical harm during the inauguration. The safety team began drafting an analysis of the tweets and whether they constituted grounds for kicking off Trump, the people said. Around noon in San Francisco that day, Dorsey called in for an employee meeting. Some pressed him on why Trump was not permanently barred. Dorsey repeated that Twitter should be consistent with its policies. But he said he had drawn a line in the sand that the president could not cross or Trump would lose his account privileges, people with knowledge of the event said. After the meeting, Dorsey and other executives agreed that Trump’s tweets that morning — and the responses they had provoked — had crossed that line, the people said. The employee letter asking for Trump’s removal was later delivered, they said. Within hours, Trump’s account was gone, except for an “Account suspended” label. He tried tweeting from the @POTUS account, which is the official account of the U.S. president, as well as others. But at every turn, Twitter thwarted him by pulling down the messages. Some Twitter employees, fearing the wrath of Trump’s supporters, have now set their Twitter accounts to private and removed mentions of their employer from online biographies, four people said. Several executives were assigned personal security. Twitter has also broadened its crackdown on accounts promoting violence. Over the weekend, it removed more than 70,000 accounts that pushed the QAnon conspiracy theory, which posits that Trump is fighting a cabal of Satan-worshipping pedophiles. On Wednesday, employees gathered virtually to discuss the decision to bar Trump, two attendees said. Some were grateful that Twitter had taken action, while others were eager to leave the Trump era behind. Many were emotional; some cried. That afternoon, Trump returned again to Twitter, this time using the official @WhiteHouse account to share a video saying he condemned violence — but also denouncing what he called restrictions on free speech. Twitter allowed the video to remain online. An hour later, Dorsey tweeted his discomfort about the removal of Trump’s online accounts. It “sets a precedent I feel is dangerous: the power an individual or corporation has over a part of the global public conversation,” he wrote. But, he concluded, “everything we learn in this moment will better our effort, and push us to be what we are: one humanity working together.”

Inside Twitter’s decision to cut off Trump

<p>Rishabh Pant has been a talking point for many reasons at the Gabba Test. However, this time it was his choice in sunglasses he wore during the first session of Day 2 against Australia on Saturday.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Pant's fluorescent rimmed-goggles attracted the attention of Shane Warne and Kerry O’ Keefe, Australian commentators on Fox Sports. “What do you think of those shades that Rishabh Pant is rocking Skull?” Warne asked O’Keeffe.</p>

<p>“Straight out of the service station?”</p>

<p>“They are servos aren’t they?” O’Keeffe replied.</p>

<p>“And he bought flowers as well.</p>

<p>“No they are not getting me. You would want them to get scratched so you can just put them in the bin.</p>

<p>They went on to talk about Shikhar Dhawan, who was wearing sunglasses too. To which, Warne said: “You talk about the bin Skull, but look at Shikhar Dhawan is rocking there goodness me. It looks like something out of the old movie Slapshot. I think he might need windscreen wipers Skull.”</p>

<p>“You could weld in them,” O’Keeffe replied.</p>

<p>However, this chat did not go down well with Twitteratis, as they reminded Shane Warne of the time when he wore a similar kind of goggles. Shane Warne and Fox Cricket too joined the party and shared the Australian spinner's photos with a variety of goggles.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Shane Warne having a go at Rishabh Pant’s sunglasses. Also Shane Warne <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AUSvsIND?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AUSvsIND</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/FOXCricketLive?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FOXCricketLive</a> <a href="https://t.co/EdJ3zzhhu9">pic.twitter.com/EdJ3zzhhu9</a></p>
— Tom Smirk (@smooka20) <a href="https://twitter.com/smooka20/status/1349896034722304000?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 15, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Shane Warne has called out Rishabh Pant for his sunglasses.<br />
<br />
Also Shane Warne:<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AUSvIND?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AUSvIND</a> <a href="https://t.co/wV8z3cG1qD">pic.twitter.com/wV8z3cG1qD</a></p>
— bet365_aus (@bet365_aus) <a href="https://twitter.com/bet365_aus/status/1349902912403763202?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 15, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">And one more pair of servo sunnies <a href="https://twitter.com/FoxCricket?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FoxCricket</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/RishabhPant17?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RishabhPant17</a> hahaha !!! 😳😳😩😩😂 <a href="https://t.co/ZS7tVcQcXY">pic.twitter.com/ZS7tVcQcXY</a></p>
— Shane Warne (@ShaneWarne) <a href="https://twitter.com/ShaneWarne/status/1350273352523423746?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 16, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Sorry mate it had to be done 😂 <a href="https://twitter.com/ShaneWarne?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ShaneWarne</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AUSvIND?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AUSvIND</a> <a href="https://t.co/FqOSGT8vWQ">pic.twitter.com/FqOSGT8vWQ</a></p>
— Fox Cricket (@FoxCricket) <a href="https://twitter.com/FoxCricket/status/1350263943554502656?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 16, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>


Rishabh Pant has been a talking point for many reasons at the Gabba Test. However, this time it was his choice in sunglasses he wore during the first session of Day 2 against Australia on Saturday.

Rishabh Pant has been a talking point for many reasons at the Gabba Test. However, this time it was his choice in sunglasses he wore during the first session of Day 2 against Australia on Saturday. Pant's fluorescent rimmed-goggles attracted the attention of Shane Warne and Kerry O’ Keefe, Australian commentators on Fox Sports. “What do you think of those shades that Rishabh Pant is rocking Skull?” Warne asked O’Keeffe. “Straight out of the service station?” “They are servos aren’t they?” O’Keeffe replied. “And he bought flowers as well. “No they are not getting me. You would want them to get scratched so you can just put them in the bin. They went on to talk about Shikhar Dhawan, who was wearing sunglasses too. To which, Warne said: “You talk about the bin Skull, but look at Shikhar Dhawan is rocking there goodness me. It looks like something out of the old movie Slapshot. I think he might need windscreen wipers Skull.” “You could weld in them,” O’Keeffe replied. However, this chat did not go down well with Twitteratis, as they reminded Shane Warne of the time when he wore a similar kind of goggles. Shane Warne and Fox Cricket too joined the party and shared the Australian spinner's photos with a variety of goggles. Shane Warne having a go at Rishabh Pant’s sunglasses. Also Shane Warne #AUSvsIND @FOXCricketLive pic.twitter.com/EdJ3zzhhu9 — Tom Smirk (@smooka20) January 15, 2021 × Shane Warne has called out Rishabh Pant for his sunglasses. Also Shane Warne:#AUSvIND pic.twitter.com/wV8z3cG1qD — bet365_aus (@bet365_aus) January 15, 2021 × And one more pair of servo sunnies @FoxCricket @RishabhPant17 hahaha !!! 😳😳😩😩😂 pic.twitter.com/ZS7tVcQcXY — Shane Warne (@ShaneWarne) January 16, 2021 × Sorry mate it had to be done 😂 @ShaneWarne #AUSvIND pic.twitter.com/FqOSGT8vWQ — Fox Cricket (@FoxCricket) January 16, 2021 ×

Shane Warne trolls Rishabh Pant fluorescent rimmed-goggles; netizens respond

<p>President-elect Joe Biden has launched a new Twitter handle to build his following before taking command of White House accounts on&nbsp;Inauguration Day.</p>

<p>Biden's account has just one tweet and it has already been verified by social networking platform Twitter.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Folks — This will be the account for my official duties as President. At 12:01 PM on January 20th, it will become <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a>. Until then, I'll be using <a href="https://twitter.com/JoeBiden?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JoeBiden</a>. And while you're here, follow <a href="https://twitter.com/FLOTUSBiden?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FLOTUSBiden</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/SenKamalaHarris?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SenKamalaHarris</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/SecondGentleman?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SecondGentleman</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/Transition46?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Transition46</a>.</p>
— President-elect Biden (@PresElectBiden) <a href="https://twitter.com/PresElectBiden/status/1349918127413407747?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 15, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p>Twitter&nbsp;Inc on Thursday said it will transfer institutional White House&nbsp;Twitter&nbsp;accounts to Biden administration when the US&nbsp;President-elect swears in on January 20.</p>

<p>Twitter&nbsp;said it will facilitate the transfer of institutional White House&nbsp;Twitter&nbsp;accounts including, @WhiteHouse, @POTUS, @VP, @FLOTUS, and @PressSec, adding those accounts will not automatically retain the followers from the prior administration.</p>

<p>Meanwhile,&nbsp;the Trump administration’s&nbsp;@POTUS&nbsp;account will be publicly archived as @POTUS45, just as the Obama administration’s account was archived as&nbsp;@POTUS44.</p>

<p>Earlier,&nbsp;Twitter&nbsp;Inc Chief Executive Jack Dorsey said on Wednesday that banning President Donald Trump from its social media platform after last week's violence at the U.S. Capitol was the "right decision," but said it sets a dangerous precedent.</p>

<p>San Francisco-based&nbsp;Twitter&nbsp;last week removed Trump's account, which had 88 million followers, citing the risk of further violence following the storming of the Capitol by supporters of the president.</p>

<p>Trump's refusal to accept any responsibility for the horrifying scenes on January 6 has infuriated allies and opponents alike.</p>


President-elect Joe Biden has launched a new Twitter handle to build his following before taking command of White House accounts on Inauguration Day. Biden's account has just one tweet and it has already been verified by social networking platform Twitter.

President-elect Joe Biden has launched a new Twitter handle to build his following before taking command of White House accounts on Inauguration Day. Biden's account has just one tweet and it has already been verified by social networking platform Twitter. Folks — This will be the account for my official duties as President. At 12:01 PM on January 20th, it will become @POTUS. Until then, I'll be using @JoeBiden. And while you're here, follow @FLOTUSBiden @SenKamalaHarris @SecondGentleman and @Transition46. — President-elect Biden (@PresElectBiden) January 15, 2021 × Twitter Inc on Thursday said it will transfer institutional White House Twitter accounts to Biden administration when the US President-elect swears in on January 20. Twitter said it will facilitate the transfer of institutional White House Twitter accounts including, @WhiteHouse, @POTUS, @VP, @FLOTUS, and @PressSec, adding those accounts will not automatically retain the followers from the prior administration. Meanwhile, the Trump administration’s @POTUS account will be publicly archived as @POTUS45, just as the Obama administration’s account was archived as @POTUS44. Earlier, Twitter Inc Chief Executive Jack Dorsey said on Wednesday that banning President Donald Trump from its social media platform after last week's violence at the U.S. Capitol was the "right decision," but said it sets a dangerous precedent. San Francisco-based Twitter last week removed Trump's account, which had 88 million followers, citing the risk of further violence following the storming of the Capitol by supporters of the president. Trump's refusal to accept any responsibility for the horrifying scenes on January 6 has infuriated allies and opponents alike.

Verified in one tweet: Joe Biden launches new Twitter handle to build following before taking command of White House

<p>Youtube on Tuesday suspended current US President Donald Trump's channel for violation of policies designed against incitement to violence. This is latest in series of actions social media platforms are taking against Trump whose supporters attacked Capitol Building just after his address to them. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram have already suspended Trump's accounts.</p>

<p>Now as per Youtube's action, new videos cannot be uploaded on Trump's channel. Upload of videos and livestreaming will be blocked for seven days. Youtube has said in a statement that the ban may be extended.</p>

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<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>Supporters of Trump stormed the US&nbsp;Capitol on Wednesday, trying to halt the certification by Congress of President-elect Joe Biden's election win. Trump, who has challenged the validity of Biden's victory without producing evidence, initially praised his supporters but later condemned the violence.</p>

<p>Lawmakers were forced to flee as the building was mobbed by protesters who overwhelmed security forces. Five people died in the violence, including one Capitol Police officer.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/mike-pence-rejects-invoking-25th-amendment-as-democrats-move-to-impeach-trump-356339">Mike Pence rejects invoking 25th Amendment as Democrats move to impeach Trump</a></strong></p>

<p>After the incident, Twitter and Facebook removed Trump's accounts and have been eliminating content supporting last week's assault, while Amazon.com Inc suspended Parler, a social media platform favored by many supporters of Trump, from its web hosting service.</p>

<p><strong>(With Reuters inputs)</strong></p>


Youtube on Tuesday suspended current US President Donald Trump's channel for violation of policies designed against incitement to violence. This is latest in series of actions social media platforms are taking against Trump whose supporters attacked Capitol Building just after his address to them.

Youtube on Tuesday suspended current US President Donald Trump's channel for violation of policies designed against incitement to violence. This is latest in series of actions social media platforms are taking against Trump whose supporters attacked Capitol Building just after his address to them. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram have already suspended Trump's accounts. Now as per Youtube's action, new videos cannot be uploaded on Trump's channel. Upload of videos and livestreaming will be blocked for seven days. Youtube has said in a statement that the ban may be extended. × Supporters of Trump stormed the US Capitol on Wednesday, trying to halt the certification by Congress of President-elect Joe Biden's election win. Trump, who has challenged the validity of Biden's victory without producing evidence, initially praised his supporters but later condemned the violence. Lawmakers were forced to flee as the building was mobbed by protesters who overwhelmed security forces. Five people died in the violence, including one Capitol Police officer. Also Read | Mike Pence rejects invoking 25th Amendment as Democrats move to impeach Trump After the incident, Twitter and Facebook removed Trump's accounts and have been eliminating content supporting last week's assault, while Amazon.com Inc suspended Parler, a social media platform favored by many supporters of Trump, from its web hosting service. (With Reuters inputs)

YouTube suspends Trump's channel for violation of policy on violence incitement

Social media platform Twitter has suspended more than 70,000 accounts that were sharing QAnon content. The move comes days after Trump's loyalist stormed the US Capitol Hill.

Twitter suspends 70,000 accounts sharing QAnon content

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<p>A few days after the social media platform Twitter indefinitely suspended the outgoing&nbsp;<strong>US President&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a></strong>'s account, the platform has now suspended more than 70,000 more accounts which were apparently linked to the infamous conspiracy group QAnon.</p>

<p>"Since Friday, more than 70,000 accounts have been suspended as a result of our efforts, with many instances of a single individual operating numerous accounts," Twitter said in a blog post. "These accounts were engaged in sharing harmful QAnon-associated content at scale and were primarily dedicated to the propagation of this conspiracy theory across the service."</p>

<p><strong>Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/ahead-of-bidens-inauguration-trump-approves-emergency-declaration-for-washington-356146">Ahead of Biden's inauguration, Trump approves emergency declaration for Washington</a></strong></p>

<p>QAnon is a far-right conspiracy theory group that claims Donald Trump is waging a secret civil war against&nbsp;a global liberal cult of Satan-worshipping paedophiles.</p>

<p>The accounts were suspended after the activity of these accounts surged since the Capitol riots that took place last Wednesday when Trump supporters raided the building to intervene certification of Joe Biden's election win.</p>

<p>This action by the social media giant also came at a time when Trump supporters were planning a protest outside&nbsp;Twitter's San Francisco headquarters to raise their voices against Twitter's decision of banning their leader's account.&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/fbi-warns-armed-trump-supporters-could-hold-protests-in-all-50-states-ahead-of-bidens-inauguration-356130" hreflang="en">FBI warns armed Trump supporters could hold protests in all 50 states</a></strong></p>

<p>However, the planned protest turned out to be a flop show as very few people actually turned up for this planned protest.&nbsp;Messages were posted on this weekend on a popular far-right forum TheDonald.win urging pro-Trump activists to gather outside Twitter's offices. However, the masterminds forgot that the Twitter headquarters are majorly deserted these days as majority employees have been working from home due to the widespread of the deadly coronavirus.</p>

<p>Twitter is not the only platform to ban Trump's account with nearly 88 million followers. Facebook and Snapchat, too, had taken the decision to ban the soon-to-be-impeached President as he was accused of inciting and motivating violence through his blind followers in the pretext of 'Make America Great Again'.</p>


A few days after the social media platform Twitter indefinitely suspended the outgoing US President Donald Trump's account, the platform has now suspended more than 70,000 more accounts which were apparently linked to the infamous conspiracy group QAnon.

A few days after the social media platform Twitter indefinitely suspended the outgoing US President Donald Trump's account, the platform has now suspended more than 70,000 more accounts which were apparently linked to the infamous conspiracy group QAnon. "Since Friday, more than 70,000 accounts have been suspended as a result of our efforts, with many instances of a single individual operating numerous accounts," Twitter said in a blog post. "These accounts were engaged in sharing harmful QAnon-associated content at scale and were primarily dedicated to the propagation of this conspiracy theory across the service." Also read| Ahead of Biden's inauguration, Trump approves emergency declaration for Washington QAnon is a far-right conspiracy theory group that claims Donald Trump is waging a secret civil war against a global liberal cult of Satan-worshipping paedophiles. The accounts were suspended after the activity of these accounts surged since the Capitol riots that took place last Wednesday when Trump supporters raided the building to intervene certification of Joe Biden's election win. This action by the social media giant also came at a time when Trump supporters were planning a protest outside Twitter's San Francisco headquarters to raise their voices against Twitter's decision of banning their leader's account. Also read| FBI warns armed Trump supporters could hold protests in all 50 states However, the planned protest turned out to be a flop show as very few people actually turned up for this planned protest. Messages were posted on this weekend on a popular far-right forum TheDonald.win urging pro-Trump activists to gather outside Twitter's offices. However, the masterminds forgot that the Twitter headquarters are majorly deserted these days as majority employees have been working from home due to the widespread of the deadly coronavirus. Twitter is not the only platform to ban Trump's account with nearly 88 million followers. Facebook and Snapchat, too, had taken the decision to ban the soon-to-be-impeached President as he was accused of inciting and motivating violence through his blind followers in the pretext of 'Make America Great Again'.

Twitter suspends 70,000 QAnon-related accounts; Trump supporters plan 'flop' protest

<p>Following the riots at US Capitol on Wednesday, many major social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook restricted US President Donald Trump's reach on their websites. Twitter went a step further on Friday by permanently suspending Trump's account.</p>

<p>Now, many companies are undertaking audits to ascertain the veracity of users on their portals. As part of this routine exercise, Twitter regularly suspends accounts that may be "bots", or automated accounts that push out regulated content, which in many cases are used to propagate fake news.<br />
<br />
Twitter's task of checking whether real people use unverified accounts on the portal has created a ruckus among the supporters of Donald Trump, and many of his government officials. A lot of US government officials have lost followers on the website, which they are now labelling an attack on the freedom of speech aimed at conservative voices, a claim which has been for long denied by both Twitter and Facebook.</p>

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<p>Trump's involvement in the riots wasn't direct, but he had urged his followers to march to the Capitol on the same day, which ended up in death and destruction at the US Capitol, marking the first instance of violence during the transition period in between presidencies.</p>

<p><strong>Also read:&nbsp;</strong><a href="https://www.wionews.com/technology/american-agencies-using-facial-recognition-tools-to-nab-us-capitol-rioters-356024" hreflang="en">American agencies using facial recognition tools to nab US Capitol rioters</a></p>

<p>In response, Twitter released a statement claiming this exercise is undertaken regularly in a bid to "challenge accounts to confirm details like email and phone number. Until that info is confirmed, these accounts aren’t included in follower counts”.</p>

<p>Soon after the fluctuation in number, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tweeted the following - “This is how you create an echo chamber”, attaching a picture proving he had lost 19,500 followers.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">This is how you create an echo chamber... <a href="https://t.co/aPDA37qKS0">pic.twitter.com/aPDA37qKS0</a></p>
— Mike Pompeo (@mikepompeo) <a href="https://twitter.com/mikepompeo/status/1347978415312433159?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 9, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p>Many Republican leaders and allies followed suit and made similar claims. Former Press Secretary to the Trump administration - Sarah Huckabee Sanders claimed to have lost 50,000 followers. She further attacked "big tech" for "censoring" American voices.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">I’ve lost 50k+ followers this week. The radical left and their big tech allies cannot marginalize, censor, or silence the American people. This is not China, this is United States of America, and we are a free country. <a href="https://t.co/Xupd0N1hea">https://t.co/Xupd0N1hea</a></p>
— Sarah Huckabee Sanders (@SarahHuckabee) <a href="https://twitter.com/SarahHuckabee/status/1347990928984842245?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 9, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p>Matt Gaetz of Florida made similar claims but topped it off with a light remark about losing weight.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">I wish I could lose weight as fast as I’m losing followers during this Twitter purge....</p>
— Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) <a href="https://twitter.com/mattgaetz/status/1347902978372620293?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 9, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>


Following the riots at US Capitol on Wednesday, many major social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook restricted US President Donald Trump's reach on their websites.

Following the riots at US Capitol on Wednesday, many major social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook restricted US President Donald Trump's reach on their websites. Twitter went a step further on Friday by permanently suspending Trump's account. Now, many companies are undertaking audits to ascertain the veracity of users on their portals. As part of this routine exercise, Twitter regularly suspends accounts that may be "bots", or automated accounts that push out regulated content, which in many cases are used to propagate fake news. Twitter's task of checking whether real people use unverified accounts on the portal has created a ruckus among the supporters of Donald Trump, and many of his government officials. A lot of US government officials have lost followers on the website, which they are now labelling an attack on the freedom of speech aimed at conservative voices, a claim which has been for long denied by both Twitter and Facebook. × Trump's involvement in the riots wasn't direct, but he had urged his followers to march to the Capitol on the same day, which ended up in death and destruction at the US Capitol, marking the first instance of violence during the transition period in between presidencies. Also read: American agencies using facial recognition tools to nab US Capitol rioters In response, Twitter released a statement claiming this exercise is undertaken regularly in a bid to "challenge accounts to confirm details like email and phone number. Until that info is confirmed, these accounts aren’t included in follower counts”. Soon after the fluctuation in number, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tweeted the following - “This is how you create an echo chamber”, attaching a picture proving he had lost 19,500 followers. This is how you create an echo chamber... pic.twitter.com/aPDA37qKS0 — Mike Pompeo (@mikepompeo) January 9, 2021 × Many Republican leaders and allies followed suit and made similar claims. Former Press Secretary to the Trump administration - Sarah Huckabee Sanders claimed to have lost 50,000 followers. She further attacked "big tech" for "censoring" American voices. I’ve lost 50k+ followers this week. The radical left and their big tech allies cannot marginalize, censor, or silence the American people. This is not China, this is United States of America, and we are a free country. https://t.co/Xupd0N1hea — Sarah Huckabee Sanders (@SarahHuckabee) January 9, 2021 × Matt Gaetz of Florida made similar claims but topped it off with a light remark about losing weight. I wish I could lose weight as fast as I’m losing followers during this Twitter purge.... — Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) January 9, 2021 ×

Twitter's regular audit labelled a 'purge' by Trump supporters after losing followers

<p>The social media giant, Twitter, suspended the soon-to-be-impeached US President Donald Trump's account after he was accused of promoting the idea of&nbsp;violence during the Capitol riots.</p>

<p>While the digital activists hailed Twitter's action against Trump, several European Union leaders, including Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel, seem to have a different opinion on this matter.</p>

<p><strong>Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/melania-condemns-us-capitol-violence-says-its-time-for-healing-in-a-civil-manner-356036" hreflang="en">Melania condemns Capitol violence, says time for 'healing in a civil manner'</a></strong></p>

<p>Merkel believes the action taken by Twitter and Facebook is 'problematic' as it points out the power the bosses of these digital platforms exercise in today's world and the limitation of freedom of opinion being provided to world leaders.</p>

<p>"The fundamental right to freedom of opinion is a fundamental right of elementary importance, and this fundamental right can be interfered with, but through the law and within the framework defined by the legislature, not according to the decision of the management of social media platforms. From this point of view, the chancellor considers it problematic that the accounts of the US president have been permanently blocked.," Merkel's spokesperson said on Monday.&nbsp;</p>

<p>French Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire, too, agreed with Merkel's point of view saying it is unfair that these digital platforms get a say in blocking and unblocking accounts of world leaders, rather than States and Justice.&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/twitter-blocks-phrase-hang-mike-pence-as-trump-supporters-turn-against-him-355959" hreflang="en">Twitter blocks phrase 'Hang Mike Pence' as Trump supporters turn against him</a></strong></p>

<p>"What shocks me is that it is Twitter that is shutting down Trump's account. The regulation of the digital giants cannot and should not be done by the digital oligarchy itself. It is necessary but it must be done by States and by Justice," he said.</p>

<p>Some EU leaders have also compared this attack and the following consequences to the deadly 9/11 attacks in the US. A top EU official on tech policy said this attack on the Capitol will be remembered&nbsp;as social media's September 11.&nbsp;</p>

<p><a href="https://www.wionews.com/videos/us-house-speaker-nancy-pelosi-says-ready-to-start-impeachment-against-donald-trump-356032"><strong>WATCH|&nbsp;</strong></a></p>

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<p>"Just as 9/11 marked a paradigm shift for global security, 20 years later we are witnessing a before-and-after in the role of digital platforms in our democracy," he said in a published story.</p>

<p>"The fact that a CEO can pull the plug on (Trump's) loudspeaker without any checks and balances is perplexing," Breton said. "It is not only confirmation of the power of these platforms, but it also displays deep weaknesses in the way our society is organised in the digital space."</p>


The social media giant, Twitter, suspended the soon-to-be-impeached US President Donald Trump's account after he was accused of promoting the idea of violence during the Capitol riots.

The social media giant, Twitter, suspended the soon-to-be-impeached US President Donald Trump's account after he was accused of promoting the idea of violence during the Capitol riots. While the digital activists hailed Twitter's action against Trump, several European Union leaders, including Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel, seem to have a different opinion on this matter. Also read| Melania condemns Capitol violence, says time for 'healing in a civil manner' Merkel believes the action taken by Twitter and Facebook is 'problematic' as it points out the power the bosses of these digital platforms exercise in today's world and the limitation of freedom of opinion being provided to world leaders. "The fundamental right to freedom of opinion is a fundamental right of elementary importance, and this fundamental right can be interfered with, but through the law and within the framework defined by the legislature, not according to the decision of the management of social media platforms. From this point of view, the chancellor considers it problematic that the accounts of the US president have been permanently blocked.," Merkel's spokesperson said on Monday. French Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire, too, agreed with Merkel's point of view saying it is unfair that these digital platforms get a say in blocking and unblocking accounts of world leaders, rather than States and Justice. Also read| Twitter blocks phrase 'Hang Mike Pence' as Trump supporters turn against him "What shocks me is that it is Twitter that is shutting down Trump's account. The regulation of the digital giants cannot and should not be done by the digital oligarchy itself. It is necessary but it must be done by States and by Justice," he said. Some EU leaders have also compared this attack and the following consequences to the deadly 9/11 attacks in the US. A top EU official on tech policy said this attack on the Capitol will be remembered as social media's September 11. WATCH| "Just as 9/11 marked a paradigm shift for global security, 20 years later we are witnessing a before-and-after in the role of digital platforms in our democracy," he said in a published story. "The fact that a CEO can pull the plug on (Trump's) loudspeaker without any checks and balances is perplexing," Breton said. "It is not only confirmation of the power of these platforms, but it also displays deep weaknesses in the way our society is organised in the digital space."

Suspension of Trump's Twitter account is 'problematic': Angela Merkel

<p>When the supporters of the to-be-impeached <strong>US President <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a> </strong>marched into the <strong>Capitol Building </strong>with the aim to destroy government property and the concept&nbsp;of democracy, many of them had also entered with the mindset of executing Vice President <strong>Mike Pence</strong>.</p>

<p>The outgoing VP was present in the Capitol building on Wednesday when the rioters took control of the building. He was present there to confirm the win of the President-elect <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/joe-biden">Joe Biden</a> against the Republican candidate and former reality TV star Donald Trump.</p>

<p><strong>Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/trump-may-turn-to-rudy-giuliani-again-to-defend-him-in-case-he-is-impeached-355870">Trump may turn to Rudy Giuliani again to defend him in case he is impeached</a></strong></p>

<p>When the rioters started pouring in — with alleged help of the Capitol security — the VP was rushed to safety as chants of 'Hang Mike Pence' echoed in the halls of one of the safest buildings in the US.</p>

<p>As soon as the Capitol was secured, Mike Pence completed his task of officially certifying the victory of Joe Biden. Since the announcement, the Pro-Trump rioters — who were already turning against the VP — started demanding execution of Pence.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Video of the mob chanting “hang Mike Pence.” <a href="https://t.co/K4EcKK2rab">pic.twitter.com/K4EcKK2rab</a></p>
— American Times Film (@ExportedFromMI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ExportedFromMI/status/1347763885646827522?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 9, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p>When the rioters could not find and fulfil their ill-formed dreams in the real life, they took to Twitter to express their wish to hang Mike Pence, and soon the phrase started trending on Twitter.</p>

<p>However, Twitter was quick to respond to the virtual death threats to the VP and the social media giant took conscious steps to block any such phrase from trending on their platform.&nbsp;</p>

<p><a href="https://www.wionews.com/videos/republicans-confront-donald-trumps-effect-on-party-355890"><strong>WATCH|</strong></a></p>

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<p>"We blocked the phrase and other variations of it from trending," a Twitter spokesperson said. "We want trends to promote healthy discussions on Twitter. This means that at times, we may prevent certain content from trending. As per our Help Center, there are rules for trends — if we identify accounts that violate these rules, we’ll take enforcement action."</p>

<p>Since then, the local media has also reported that there has been no communication between the President and the Vice President since Pence certified Biden's win in the recently-concluded <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/us-election">US election.</a></p>

<p>Trump critics have also accused him of being a part of — and motivating — the series of death threats against Pence by inciting violence among the rioters and openly criticising Pence for carrying out his duty.</p>


When the supporters of the to-be-impeached US President Donald Trump marched into the Capitol Building with the aim to destroy government property and the concept of democracy, many of them had also entered with the mindset of executing Vice President Mike Pence.

When the supporters of the to-be-impeached US President Donald Trump marched into the Capitol Building with the aim to destroy government property and the concept of democracy, many of them had also entered with the mindset of executing Vice President Mike Pence. The outgoing VP was present in the Capitol building on Wednesday when the rioters took control of the building. He was present there to confirm the win of the President-elect Joe Biden against the Republican candidate and former reality TV star Donald Trump. Also read| Trump may turn to Rudy Giuliani again to defend him in case he is impeached When the rioters started pouring in — with alleged help of the Capitol security — the VP was rushed to safety as chants of 'Hang Mike Pence' echoed in the halls of one of the safest buildings in the US. As soon as the Capitol was secured, Mike Pence completed his task of officially certifying the victory of Joe Biden. Since the announcement, the Pro-Trump rioters — who were already turning against the VP — started demanding execution of Pence. Video of the mob chanting “hang Mike Pence.” pic.twitter.com/K4EcKK2rab — American Times Film (@ExportedFromMI) January 9, 2021 × When the rioters could not find and fulfil their ill-formed dreams in the real life, they took to Twitter to express their wish to hang Mike Pence, and soon the phrase started trending on Twitter. However, Twitter was quick to respond to the virtual death threats to the VP and the social media giant took conscious steps to block any such phrase from trending on their platform. WATCH| × "We blocked the phrase and other variations of it from trending," a Twitter spokesperson said. "We want trends to promote healthy discussions on Twitter. This means that at times, we may prevent certain content from trending. As per our Help Center, there are rules for trends — if we identify accounts that violate these rules, we’ll take enforcement action." Since then, the local media has also reported that there has been no communication between the President and the Vice President since Pence certified Biden's win in the recently-concluded US election. Trump critics have also accused him of being a part of — and motivating — the series of death threats against Pence by inciting violence among the rioters and openly criticising Pence for carrying out his duty.

Twitter blocks phrase 'Hang Mike Pence' as Trump supporters turn against him

Twitter Inc said on Friday (January 8) that it has permanently suspended U.S. President Donald Trump's account due to the risk of further incitement of violence.

Twitter permanently suspends Donald Trump's account

<p>Twitter has banned President Donald Trump's former national security advisor Michael Flynn and pro-Trump attorney Sidney Powell as part of a purge of QAnon accounts.</p>

<p>QAnon is a baseless belief, born on the internet, that Trump has been secretly fighting deep state enemies and a cabal of Satan-worshipping cannibals operating a child sex-trafficking ring.</p>

<p>Social media companies have been under intensified pressure to crack down on hate speech, especially after Wednesday's attack on the US Capitol.</p>

<p>Dozens of QAnon social media accounts were hyping up January 6 in the days leading up to a Washington DC rally for Trump, expressing hope that President-elect Joe Biden's victory would be overturned.</p>

<p>Twitter said in an email statement on Friday: "Given the renewed potential for violence surrounding this type of behaviour in the coming days, we will permanently suspend accounts that are solely dedicated to sharing QAnon content."</p>

<p>The company says that when it determines a group or campaign is engaged in "coordinated harmful activity", it may suspend accounts that it finds primarily encourages that behaviour.<br />
&nbsp;</p>


Twitter has banned President Donald Trump's former national security advisor Michael Flynn and pro-Trump attorney Sidney Powell as part of a purge of QAnon accounts.

Twitter has banned President Donald Trump's former national security advisor Michael Flynn and pro-Trump attorney Sidney Powell as part of a purge of QAnon accounts. QAnon is a baseless belief, born on the internet, that Trump has been secretly fighting deep state enemies and a cabal of Satan-worshipping cannibals operating a child sex-trafficking ring. Social media companies have been under intensified pressure to crack down on hate speech, especially after Wednesday's attack on the US Capitol. Dozens of QAnon social media accounts were hyping up January 6 in the days leading up to a Washington DC rally for Trump, expressing hope that President-elect Joe Biden's victory would be overturned. Twitter said in an email statement on Friday: "Given the renewed potential for violence surrounding this type of behaviour in the coming days, we will permanently suspend accounts that are solely dedicated to sharing QAnon content." The company says that when it determines a group or campaign is engaged in "coordinated harmful activity", it may suspend accounts that it finds primarily encourages that behaviour.

Twitter bans Michael Flynn, Sidney Powell as part of purge of QAnon accounts

<p>Social networking giant Twitter quickly deleted new tweets from US&nbsp;President Donald Trump from an official government account after the social media site had banned his personal account.</p>

<p>"After a close review of recent Tweets from the @realDonaldTrump account," Twitter said in a <a href="https://blog.twitter.com/en_us/topics/company/2020/suspension.html">blog post</a> explaining its decision, "we have permanently suspended the account due to the risk of further incitement of violence."&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>Also see:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/in-pics-tear-gas-explosives-and-gunfire-trump-supporters-storm-capitol-clash-with-police-354961">In pics-Tear gas, explosives and gunfire: Trump supporters storm Capitol, clash with police</a></strong></p>

<p>US President Donald Trump on Friday accused Twitter of conspiring with his political enemies "to silence me," after the social media platform permanently suspended his account.</p>

<p>"Twitter has gone further and further in banning free speech, and tonight, Twitter employees have coordinated with the Democrats and the Radical Left in removing my account from their platform, to silence me -- and YOU, the 75,000,000 great patriots who voted for me," he said in a series of tweets from the official @POTUS account.</p>

<p>Twitter had&nbsp;temporarily blocked Trump's account on Wednesday,&nbsp;following the siege of Capitol Hill by pro-Trump protesters, and warned that additional violations by the president's accounts would result in a permanent suspension.</p>

<p>The social media platform was&nbsp;Trump's&nbsp;favourite megaphone and he has&nbsp;had more than 88 million followers.</p>

<p>Trump returned to Twitter late Thursday, posting a video message that seemed aimed at calming tensions after the mayhem caused by his supporters.</p>

<p>He acknowledged his presidency was ending and promised a smooth transition to Joe Biden, although he did not go so far as to congratulate or even say the name of his successor.</p>

<p>Twitter said at the time it was continuing to watch Trump's social media activity to determine whether further action was needed.</p>

<p>The decision to suspend Trump's account came after a pair of tweets on Friday, according to the one-to-many messaging platform.</p>

<p>In one of the tweets, Trump vowed that none of his supporters would be "disrespected," and in another, he said he would not be attending Biden's inauguration on January 20, as is customary.</p>

<p>"These two Tweets must be read in the context of broader events in the country and the ways in which the President's statements can be mobilized by different audiences, including to incite violence, as well as in the context of the pattern of behaviour from this account in recent weeks," Twitter said.</p>

<p>The company determined the tweets violated its "Glorification of Violence&nbsp;Policy," and that "user @realDonaldTrump&nbsp;should be immediately permanently suspended from the service."</p>

<p><strong>Also read:&nbsp;<a href="YouTube removes thousands of videos posted from Donald Trump's channel">YouTube removes thousands of videos posted from Donald Trump's channel</a></strong></p>

<p><strong>Talk of new attack&nbsp;</strong></p>

<p>Twitter said it also factored in that plans for more armed protests have been proliferating on and off the service, including a proposed second attack on the US Capitol and state capitol buildings on January 17.</p>

<p>Trump's tweeted statement about not attending the Inauguration has been received by some supporters as his continued rejection of the election's legitimacy and a sign that the event would be a "safe target" since he won't be there, according to Twitter.</p>

<p>The wording in Trump's Friday tweets was seen by some supporters as praise for those involved in what has been described as a coup attempt, and an indication he does not plan to smoothly yield power to Biden, Twitter said in the post.</p>

<p>Twitter confirmed that several hundred employees signed a letter to chief executive Jack Dorsey saying they were disturbed by the "insurrection" carried out by Trump supporters, who had been rallied by the president.</p>

<p>The employees called for Twitter to assess the role its platform played in Wednesday's events.</p>

<p>"Twitter encourages an open dialogue between our leadership and employees, and we welcome our employees to express their thoughts and concerns in whichever manner feels right to them," a company spokesperson said of the letter.</p>


Social networking giant Twitter quickly deleted new tweets from US President Donald Trump from an official government account after the social media site had banned his personal account.

Social networking giant Twitter quickly deleted new tweets from US President Donald Trump from an official government account after the social media site had banned his personal account. "After a close review of recent Tweets from the @realDonaldTrump account," Twitter said in a blog post explaining its decision, "we have permanently suspended the account due to the risk of further incitement of violence." Also see: In pics-Tear gas, explosives and gunfire: Trump supporters storm Capitol, clash with police US President Donald Trump on Friday accused Twitter of conspiring with his political enemies "to silence me," after the social media platform permanently suspended his account. "Twitter has gone further and further in banning free speech, and tonight, Twitter employees have coordinated with the Democrats and the Radical Left in removing my account from their platform, to silence me -- and YOU, the 75,000,000 great patriots who voted for me," he said in a series of tweets from the official @POTUS account. Twitter had temporarily blocked Trump's account on Wednesday, following the siege of Capitol Hill by pro-Trump protesters, and warned that additional violations by the president's accounts would result in a permanent suspension. The social media platform was Trump's favourite megaphone and he has had more than 88 million followers. Trump returned to Twitter late Thursday, posting a video message that seemed aimed at calming tensions after the mayhem caused by his supporters. He acknowledged his presidency was ending and promised a smooth transition to Joe Biden, although he did not go so far as to congratulate or even say the name of his successor. Twitter said at the time it was continuing to watch Trump's social media activity to determine whether further action was needed. The decision to suspend Trump's account came after a pair of tweets on Friday, according to the one-to-many messaging platform. In one of the tweets, Trump vowed that none of his supporters would be "disrespected," and in another, he said he would not be attending Biden's inauguration on January 20, as is customary. "These two Tweets must be read in the context of broader events in the country and the ways in which the President's statements can be mobilized by different audiences, including to incite violence, as well as in the context of the pattern of behaviour from this account in recent weeks," Twitter said. The company determined the tweets violated its "Glorification of Violence Policy," and that "user @realDonaldTrump should be immediately permanently suspended from the service." Also read: YouTube removes thousands of videos posted from Donald Trump's channel Talk of new attack Twitter said it also factored in that plans for more armed protests have been proliferating on and off the service, including a proposed second attack on the US Capitol and state capitol buildings on January 17. Trump's tweeted statement about not attending the Inauguration has been received by some supporters as his continued rejection of the election's legitimacy and a sign that the event would be a "safe target" since he won't be there, according to Twitter. The wording in Trump's Friday tweets was seen by some supporters as praise for those involved in what has been described as a coup attempt, and an indication he does not plan to smoothly yield power to Biden, Twitter said in the post. Twitter confirmed that several hundred employees signed a letter to chief executive Jack Dorsey saying they were disturbed by the "insurrection" carried out by Trump supporters, who had been rallied by the president. The employees called for Twitter to assess the role its platform played in Wednesday's events. "Twitter encourages an open dialogue between our leadership and employees, and we welcome our employees to express their thoughts and concerns in whichever manner feels right to them," a company spokesperson said of the letter.

Twitter permanently suspends Trump's account, deletes POTUS' new tweets

<p>On Friday, Twitter permanently suspended President Donald Trump’s account. According to the company, one of the tweets that sealed the deal was “President Trump’s statement that he will not be attending the inauguration” and its implication that the results of the 2020 election were not legitimate. After years of using the platform to spread lies and conspiracies, after countless tweets amplifying white supremacists and QAnon believers, and after attempting to provoke both North Korea and Iran, the justification feels a bit like getting Al Capone on tax evasion. And yet the damage is irrefutable.</p>

<p>Reflexively, it feels a bit odd to care so much about a 74-year-old man losing access to the app he uses to complain about cable news. But the Trump presidency, and indeed almost all of his political career, is inextricable from the platform. He tweeted and tweeted, and the rest of us rejoiced or grimaced in equal measure. Either way, his tweets made news. His account, for better or worse (spoiler: worse), acted as the national media’s assignment editor for a half decade. And here we are.</p>

<p>Now it’s gone.</p>

<p>The obvious question now is: What does this mean for Trump’s future? Can a disgraced president addicted to outrage and innately governed by the same forces as the attention economy survive without his primary outlet?</p>

<p>I think it all depends on whether Trump is, himself, a platform as formidable as some of the platforms he uses. I’ve spent the last four years thinking about this guy — almost subconsciously — as the ultimate social media influencer. But, occasionally, I wonder if maybe I’ve had it backward. Yes, Trump is at times the influencer. But does he also behave like the platform?</p>

<p>To think of Trump as an influencer is to suggest that his message can be contained. That his ideas live and die with him and his ability to broadcast them. To suggest that Trumpism is something bigger — that it is a platform itself — is to argue that Trump and his followers have constructed a powerful, parallel information ecosystem that is as strong and powerful (one could argue even more powerful) than any system built to oppose it. But anyone plugged into the pro-Trump universe realizes that Trumpism is bigger than the figurehead.</p>

<p>So which is Trump: the influencer or the platform?</p>

<p>Like a good platform, Trump has found a way to bring communities with relevant interests together while not thinking too much about the long-term costs.</p>

<p>Like all platforms, Trump is a natural engine of radicalization — for those who support him and those who oppose him. Consuming more of him leads only to a hardening of one’s ideology. Each rally and every successive tweet is more extreme than the last, propelling most of Trump’s followers deeper down the rabbit hole and intensifying their enthusiasm or disgust for the president. For this reason, like any good platform, Trump is a time suck. Evenings, weekends, holidays, you name it — are all derailed by his demand for your time and attention. Both are the ultimate currency to the Trump platform, allowing him to remain the central figure in American life.</p>

<p>And then there’s our relationship to the Trump platform, which should feel familiar to tech observers. It arrives unexpectedly and is nothing quite like what came before it. The shiny object becomes a media darling. Since it’s a novel experience, the new platform is not taken seriously as a world-changing force. The new platform announces itself with a catchy motto explicitly stating its intentions: “Make the world more open and connected,” as Facebook declared in its early days; “Make America Great Again,” as the president declares today. But still we avoid asking the hard question: What would happen if the nascent platform achieves those goals? We don’t think too hard about any of it. Even those who don’t like it partake in the platform, feeding it our attention. What’s the harm? After all, it’s free.</p>

<p>In time, we learn that’s not the case. The platform, we find, demands a great deal. Slowly and sneakily it takes and takes little pieces of us. Our data, our attention. It’s not until it’s too late that we learn the platform isn’t free — it only appears so. We learn, to our dismay, that in fact we’ve paid a great price.</p>

<p>Traditionally, a platform is a software framework for others to build on top of. In the case of the social media platforms, their fundamental role is to amass a base of users, connect them and provide people with ways to reach those audiences at scale. Influencers and creators provide the content but live at the whims of the platforms and their rules. They rely on the platforms for audience, and even a subtle tweak of an algorithm can mean fading to obscurity.</p>

<p>It is a precarious existence. When you serve at the pleasure of the platforms, you can be de-platformed. We’re about to see if Trump can truly be de-platformed.</p>


On Friday, Twitter permanently suspended President Donald Trump’s account. According to the company, one of the tweets that sealed the deal was “President Trump’s statement that he will not be attending the inauguration” and its implication that the results of the 2020 election were not legitimate.

On Friday, Twitter permanently suspended President Donald Trump’s account. According to the company, one of the tweets that sealed the deal was “President Trump’s statement that he will not be attending the inauguration” and its implication that the results of the 2020 election were not legitimate. After years of using the platform to spread lies and conspiracies, after countless tweets amplifying white supremacists and QAnon believers, and after attempting to provoke both North Korea and Iran, the justification feels a bit like getting Al Capone on tax evasion. And yet the damage is irrefutable. Reflexively, it feels a bit odd to care so much about a 74-year-old man losing access to the app he uses to complain about cable news. But the Trump presidency, and indeed almost all of his political career, is inextricable from the platform. He tweeted and tweeted, and the rest of us rejoiced or grimaced in equal measure. Either way, his tweets made news. His account, for better or worse (spoiler: worse), acted as the national media’s assignment editor for a half decade. And here we are. Now it’s gone. The obvious question now is: What does this mean for Trump’s future? Can a disgraced president addicted to outrage and innately governed by the same forces as the attention economy survive without his primary outlet? I think it all depends on whether Trump is, himself, a platform as formidable as some of the platforms he uses. I’ve spent the last four years thinking about this guy — almost subconsciously — as the ultimate social media influencer. But, occasionally, I wonder if maybe I’ve had it backward. Yes, Trump is at times the influencer. But does he also behave like the platform? To think of Trump as an influencer is to suggest that his message can be contained. That his ideas live and die with him and his ability to broadcast them. To suggest that Trumpism is something bigger — that it is a platform itself — is to argue that Trump and his followers have constructed a powerful, parallel information ecosystem that is as strong and powerful (one could argue even more powerful) than any system built to oppose it. But anyone plugged into the pro-Trump universe realizes that Trumpism is bigger than the figurehead. So which is Trump: the influencer or the platform? Like a good platform, Trump has found a way to bring communities with relevant interests together while not thinking too much about the long-term costs. Like all platforms, Trump is a natural engine of radicalization — for those who support him and those who oppose him. Consuming more of him leads only to a hardening of one’s ideology. Each rally and every successive tweet is more extreme than the last, propelling most of Trump’s followers deeper down the rabbit hole and intensifying their enthusiasm or disgust for the president. For this reason, like any good platform, Trump is a time suck. Evenings, weekends, holidays, you name it — are all derailed by his demand for your time and attention. Both are the ultimate currency to the Trump platform, allowing him to remain the central figure in American life. And then there’s our relationship to the Trump platform, which should feel familiar to tech observers. It arrives unexpectedly and is nothing quite like what came before it. The shiny object becomes a media darling. Since it’s a novel experience, the new platform is not taken seriously as a world-changing force. The new platform announces itself with a catchy motto explicitly stating its intentions: “Make the world more open and connected,” as Facebook declared in its early days; “Make America Great Again,” as the president declares today. But still we avoid asking the hard question: What would happen if the nascent platform achieves those goals? We don’t think too hard about any of it. Even those who don’t like it partake in the platform, feeding it our attention. What’s the harm? After all, it’s free. In time, we learn that’s not the case. The platform, we find, demands a great deal. Slowly and sneakily it takes and takes little pieces of us. Our data, our attention. It’s not until it’s too late that we learn the platform isn’t free — it only appears so. We learn, to our dismay, that in fact we’ve paid a great price. Traditionally, a platform is a software framework for others to build on top of. In the case of the social media platforms, their fundamental role is to amass a base of users, connect them and provide people with ways to reach those audiences at scale. Influencers and creators provide the content but live at the whims of the platforms and their rules. They rely on the platforms for audience, and even a subtle tweak of an algorithm can mean fading to obscurity. It is a precarious existence. When you serve at the pleasure of the platforms, you can be de-platformed. We’re about to see if Trump can truly be de-platformed.

Can Donald Trump survive without Twitter?

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