Trump wrote:Irony is not dead.
Google bent to pressure from Biden to suppress Covid misinformation. Now it repents. Republicans celebrate.
ABC/Disney bent to pressure from Trump to suppress Jimmy Kimmel. Now it reverses itself. Trump is furious.
I woke up this morning to news on Fox that Google "finally came clean," as the Fox host put it. He said Google admitted that the Biden administration had urged them to suppress and de-platform certain content in 2021.
Google had taken down content on YouTube that presented what the Biden administration, plus the majority of medical and public health officials, thought was Covid-related misinformation. It blocked some material it considered dangerous and false that supported the January 6 insurrection. After some behind the scenes urging by the Biden administration it also was slow to publish information about the contents of Hunter Biden's laptop.
We don't do that anymore, Google wrote the House Judiciary Committee.
Google is making nice with Trump and Republicans. Its general counsel signed an obsequious five-page letter saying:
The company appreciates the accountability from the House Judiciary Committee -- led by Chairman Jim Jordan -- and its critical role in advancing the core American value of freedom of expression.The Company has a commitment to freedom of expression. This commitment is unwavering and will not bend to political pressure.
This is a "win" for Republicans who felt abused by YouTube having suppressed "alternative facts" contrary to the "so-called science" of establishment experts.Alphabet, the parent of Google and YouTube, agreed to end nearly all content moderation. If there was inaccurate content, it would be up to fellow users to "add notes to provide relevant, timely, and understandable context." This is an elegant and cynical approach for Google. It off-loads responsibility for dangerous misinformation; content flame wars increase viewer engagement and therefore YouTube's value to advertisers; it wraps the solution in the All-American value of free speech; and it pleases the now-dominant political party.
Jim Jordon said on Fox that this is a victory for free speech. Controversial people have a right to be heard.
Meanwhile -- simultaneously -- a second free speech issue is playing out. Jimmy Kimmel is back on ABC, although he is conspicuously absent from Sinclair and Nexstar affiliates. Kimmel thanked Charlie Kirk's widow for "the very beautiful moment" of her words of forgiveness to the shooter. He thanked ABC, which for years has "defended my right to poke fun at our leaders and to advocate for subjects that I think are important."
But the theme of the day is contradiction, not free speech. Within the hour, switching my kitchen TV to CNN, I learned that Trump is furious that ABC reinstated Kimmel. He wants Kimmel deplatformed. He wrote on Truth Social that he will "test ABC out on this" and hopes for another lucrative settlement.
My kitchen TV
I can’t believe ABC Fake News gave Jimmy Kimmel his job back. The White House was told by ABC that his Show was cancelled! Something happened between then and now because his audience is GONE, and his ‘talent’ was never there. Why would they want someone back who does so poorly, who’s not funny, and who puts the Network in jeopardy by playing 99% positive Democrat GARBAGE.
He is yet another arm of the DNC and, to the best of my knowledge, that would be a major Illegal Campaign Contribution. I think we’re going to test ABC out on this. Let’s see how we do. Last time I went after them, they gave me $16 Million Dollars. This one sounds even more lucrative. A true bunch of losers! Let Jimmy Kimmel rot in his bad Ratings.
"First you say you will and then you won'tThen you say you do and then you don't."Charlie Shavers, "Undecided," 1938, popularized by Ella Fitzgerald, 1939
2 comments:
After I fact checked your post...can't be too careful...I have to admit I'm disappointed but not surprised. The key phrase is "plus the majority of medical and public health officials". If you want to live in a fact free Universe, knock yourself out. One guess as to who will prevail in a contest with reality. Smart people will refer to known experts and verified sources for their information. Others will suffer the consequences. FYI Kimmel was blocked here in Medford. EPSTEIN!
Funny how what goes around, comes around.
Think back with me if you will, to 2020, when USC professor Greg Patton got suspended from a business communications class he was teaching because he told them about the importance of pause and filler words like "um" and "er".
Patton mentioned that there was a similar filler word in Chinese, pronounced something like "nei geh." Some idiotically woke students thought that sounded too much like a racial slur, so they complained about it and got him suspended, even though he was correct that there is such a word in Chinese, and it was relevant to the topic.
Having the government do something like this is even worse, but violations against free speech and the enforcement of language taboos did not start with the current Trump administration.
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