On Thursday, Matt Taibbi tweeted out another round of the Twitter files concerning what he dubbed the "Censorship-Industrial Complex," and reported on an "incestuous self-appointed truth squad" moving within Twitter, government agencies, establishment media, and non-profit organizations all of whom ideologically align in censorship efforts.
(Article by Joshua Young republished from ThePostMillenial.com)
Twitter owner Elon Musk tweeted that the revelations were "Concerning," as Taibbi highlighted an internal document from "the ultimate example of the absolute fusion of state, corporate, and civil society organizations," Stanford Internet Observatory's Election Integrity Partnership, who said "True content" might "promote vaccine hesitancy" such as "stories of true vaccine side effects" which they deemed "malinformation" as opposed to mis or disinformation.
Concerning https://t.co/jz8tUgjHmL
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 9, 2023
The new round of the Twitter Files was released the same day as a Congressional hearing on the Twitter Files, which have been a series of reports detailing internal records at Twitter concerning the company's censorship efforts, especially regarding Covid and censorship, with collusion from government agencies towards those goals.
Congresswoman Sylvia Garcia: "So then you consider @Elonmusk the direct source of all this?"@Mtaibbi: "No, you're trying to get me to say that he is the source" pic.twitter.com/VOgJT89Ypp
— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) March 9, 2023
In Thursday's batch of Twitter Files, Taibbi began by noting that previous installments "focused on the company, which at times acted like a power above government" or "more like a partner to government." Taibbi added a screenshot of FBI Supervisory Special Agent Elvis Chan sending Twitter a list of accounts that the FBI believed violated their terms of service.
3. But Twitter was more like a partner to government.
With other tech firms it held a regular “industry meeting” with FBI and DHS, and developed a formal system for receiving thousands of content reports from every corner of government: HHS, Treasury, NSA, even local police: pic.twitter.com/DgI954lge7
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) March 9, 2023
Taibbi detailed how many of the reports "didn't even assert misinformation" and a list of YouTube videos were flagged for "anti-Ukraine narratives."
7. In some cases, state reports didn’t even assert misinformation. Here, a list of YouTube videos is flagged for “anti-Ukraine narratives”: pic.twitter.com/dAWYp8Ht5j
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) March 9, 2023
Taibbi reported how Twitter took many requests for censorship from non-governmental organizations such as non-profit organizations.
9. Asked if Twitter’s marketing department could say the company detects “misinfo” with help of “outside experts,” a Twitter executive replied: pic.twitter.com/oYjKUqE96I
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) March 9, 2023
"The National Endowment for Democracy, the Atlantic Council’s DFRLab, and Hamilton 68’s creator, the Alliance for Securing Democracy," were all in this so-called Censorship-Industrial Complex.
11. Who’s in the Censorship-Industrial Complex? Twitter in 2020 helpfully compiled a list for a working group set up in 2020.
The National Endowment for Democracy, the Atlantic Council’s DFRLab, and Hamilton 68’s creator, the Alliance for Securing Democracy, are key: pic.twitter.com/7lLlL2tcjN
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) March 9, 2023
Taibbi said the Censorship-Industrial Complex had its "Woodstock" when "the Aspen Institute - which receives millions a year from both the State Department and USAID - held a star-studded confab in Aspen in August 2021 to release its final report on 'Information Disorder.'"
14. The Woodstock of the Censorship-Industrial Complex came when the Aspen Institute - which receives millions a year from both the State Department and USAID - held a star-studded confab in Aspen in August 2021 to release its final report on “Information Disorder.” pic.twitter.com/F1NOIlzC45
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) March 9, 2023
Katie Couric was a co-author of the report and Prince Harry served as a Commissioner.
"Their taxpayer-backed conclusions: the state should have total access to data to make searching speech easier, speech offenders should be put in a 'holding area,' and government should probably restrict disinformation, 'even if it means losing some freedom,'" Taibbi said.
16. Their taxpayer-backed conclusions: the state should have total access to data to make searching speech easier, speech offenders should be put in a “holding area," and government should probably restrict disinformation, “even if it means losing some freedom.” pic.twitter.com/YTVu98FPLV
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) March 9, 2023
"The same agencies (FBI, DHS/CISA, GEC) invite the same 'experts' (Thomas Rid, Alex Stamos), funded by the same foundations (Newmark, Omidyar, Knight) trailed by the same reporters (Margaret Sullivan, Molly McKew, Brandy Zadrozny) seemingly to every conference, every panel," Taibbi tweeted and called it an "incestuous self-appointed truth squad moving from law enforcement/intelligence to the private sector and back."
20. The #TwitterFiles show the principals of this incestuous self-appointed truth squad moving from law enforcement/intelligence to the private sector and back, claiming a special right to do what they say is bad practice for everyone else: be fact-checked only by themselves.
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) March 9, 2023
"#TwitterFiles repeatedly show media acting as proxy for NGOs," Taibbi reported.
22. #TwitterFiles repeatedly show media acting as proxy for NGOs, with Twitter bracing for bad headlines if they don't nix accounts. Here, the Financial Times gives Twitter until end of day to provide a “steer” on whether RFK, Jr. and other vax offenders will be zapped. pic.twitter.com/Cd3C78Gv2P
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) March 9, 2023
Taibbi said the Stanford Internet Observatory's Election Integrity Partnership (EIP) was a significant flagger of content to Twitter.
EIP was created after the Disinformation Governance Board and "According to the EIP's own data, it succeeded in getting nearly 22 million tweets labeled in the runup to the 2020 vote."
27. After public uproar “paused” the Orwellian “Disinformation Governance Board” of the DHS in early 2020, Stanford created the EIP to “fill the gaps” legally, as director Alex Stamos explains here (h/t Foundation for Freedom Online). https://t.co/G7xLxecbMk
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) March 9, 2023
EIP research manager Renee DiResta "boasted" in what EIP had accomplished in getting certain tweets removed.
28. EIP research manager Renee DiResta boasted that while filling “gaps," the EIP succeeded in getting “tech partners” Google, TikTok, Facebook and Twitter to take action on “35% of the URLS flagged” under “remove, reduce, or inform” policies.https://t.co/4hqdH49UD5
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) March 9, 2023
EIP, later renamed the Virality Project, "was partnered with state entities like CISA and GEC while seeking elimination of millions of tweets."
30. It’s crucial to reiterate: EIP was partnered with state entities like CISA and GEC while seeking elimination of millions of tweets. In the #TwitterFiles, Twitter execs did not distinguish between organizations, using phrases like “According to CIS[A], escalated via EIP.” pic.twitter.com/qmmpWr2aZX
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) March 9, 2023
"DiResta has become the public face of the Censorship-Industrial Complex, a name promoted everywhere as an unquestioned authority on truth, fact, and Internet hygiene, even though her former firm, New Knowledge, has been embroiled in two major disinformation scandals," Taibbi tweeted.
35. DiResta has become the public face of the Censorship-Industrial Complex, a name promoted everywhere as an unquestioned authority on truth, fact, and Internet hygiene, even though her former firm, New Knowledge, has been embroiled in two major disinformation scandals. pic.twitter.com/nFg5JS2vkH
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) March 9, 2023
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