Mr. Trump tried to evade the ban late Friday by using the @POTUS Twitter account, which belongs to sitting U.S. presidents, as well as other accounts to lash out at the company. But almost all of his messages were almost immediately removed by Twitter. The company forbids users to try avoiding a suspension with secondary accounts.
Mr. Trump tried to evade the ban late Friday by using the @POTUS Twitter account, which belongs to sitting U.S. presidents, as well as other accounts to lash out at the company. But almost all of his messages were almost immediately removed by Twitter. The company forbids users to try avoiding a suspension with secondary accounts.
Twitter said that it will not suspend the @POTUS account because it will be available to Biden after he is sworn in.
Every former POTUS managed to communicate without Twitter. Many communicated very well and effectively before the invention of radio and TV.
If he has something to say he ought to call a Press Conference.
This is one of the best arguments that Trump's speech isn't curtailed by a Twitter ban. He could call a press conference in two minutes and be broadcast around the globe.
At any rate Twitter is a private company. If I owned a bullhorn-renting company and I rented a bullhorn to someone who then stood in Times Square and spewed a bunch of stuff I didn't like, I could refuse to rent him a bullhorn ever again. It's got nothing to do with the content.
Every former POTUS managed to communicate without Twitter. Many communicated very well and effectively before the invention of radio and TV.
If he has something to say he ought to call a Press Conference.
This is one of the best arguments that Trump's speech isn't curtailed by a Twitter ban. He could call a press conference in two minutes and be broadcast around the globe.
At any rate Twitter is a private company. If I owned a bullhorn-renting company and I rented a bullhorn to someone who then stood in Times Square and spewed a bunch of stuff I didn't like, I could refuse to rent him a bullhorn ever again. It's got nothing to do with the content.
Twitter is a public company, but your argument is still valid.
And you know what? Alphabet (Google) and Apple are also public companies, and together they control 99% of the software platforms for smartphones in the US. And it is fully within their right to require social media apps to have some content moderation plan or otherwise ban them. Which is exactly what they just did with Parler, which positioned itself as Twitter without rules, and was therefore attracting right wingers kicked off of Twitter. And guess what, if Trump comes up with his own platform/app, they will do exactly the same.
Company towns and private malls have been ruled to be, depending on the court and jurisdiction, public squares subject to First Amendment protections. In a case pending before the Supreme Court (Knight First Amendment Institute v. Trump), lower federal courts ruled that Trump couldn’t block Twitter users, because Twitter is a public forum.
In other words, the argument that because Twitter is a company it can do what it wants is not so cut and dried.
Company towns and private malls have been ruled to be, depending on the court and jurisdiction, public squares subject to First Amendment protections. In a case pending before the Supreme Court (Knight First Amendment Institute v. Trump), lower federal courts have ruled that Trump can’t block Twitter users because Twitter is a public forum.
In other words, the argument that because Twitter is a company it can do what it wants is not so cut and dried.
You're misreading Knight. It's that Trump as a government official is restricted in blocking people, not that Twitter is restricted.
You're misreading Knight. It's that Trump as a government official is restricted in blocking people, not that Twitter is restricted.
I could easily be misreading it, so thank you. What struck me was the Second Circuit’s affirmation that the dialogue on Twitter “creates a public forum.”
If my larger point is also off base — that it’s not a given that Twitter is immune to First Amendment protections — I welcome your and others’ input as well.
You're misreading Knight. It's that Trump as a government official is restricted in blocking people, not that Twitter is restricted.
I could easily be misreading it, so thank you. What struck me was the Second Circuit’s affirmation that the dialogue on Twitter “creates a public forum.”
If my larger point is also off base — that it’s not a given that Twitter is immune to First Amendment protections — I welcome your and others’ input as well.
What's important to remember is who is doing the redacting - Twitter or the government. Twitter can, government can't.
I don't think the "public forum" aspect really plays into the decision here. It doesn't appear to be necessary to reach the decision the court reached.
I could easily be misreading it, so thank you. What struck me was the Second Circuit’s affirmation that the dialogue on Twitter “creates a public forum.”
If my larger point is also off base — that it’s not a given that Twitter is immune to First Amendment protections — I welcome your and others’ input as well.
It's only a public forum when the government official is speaking.
Maybe somebody knows the answer to an idle curious question. Could his cell phone service provider cut off his service if he was using the phone in a way that violated the Terms of Service? Like if they determined he was using it for something illegal?
Maybe somebody knows the answer to an idle curious question. Could his cell phone service provider cut off his service if he was using the phone in a way that violated the Terms of Service? Like if they determined he was using it for something illegal?
It’ll be like in The Wire, he’ll be sending Eric out to buy a bunch of burner phones
I rarely tell people that I don’t believe in voting. Participation in the body politic is widely considered to be both a privilege and an imperative to the enlightened urban citizen. To choose otherwise is quite literally heresy – and heretics by and large have a difficult time of it in society. ...
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