Lawmakers at CPAC sound off on Big Tech ‘hypocrisy’ regarding Putin and conservatives
Elected officials at CPAC speak with Fox News Digital about whether Big Tech is censoring conservatives while allowing others, such as Vladimir Putin, to speak freely.
Twitter was scolded by journalists across the globe Monday for continuing to allow Russian state accounts to push "disinformation" and "lies" on the platform after a Kremlin account claimed Ukraine has attacked its own nuclear facilities.
As Russian President Vladimir Putin’s military has shaken the world with its invasion of Ukraine, many Americans – including former President Trump – are blocked from the platform that has repeatedly allowed the Russian government to spread its message.
Twitter has also censored opponents of critical race theory, users who tweet COVID-related "misinformation," and a variety of other prominent figures, frequently conservative in their politics, for various reasons. This occurs as several Kremlin accounts are allowed to freely share Russian talking points to people across the globe.
"Twitter has no clear-cut policy about what is allowed except that conservative posts are often targeted. The president of Russia still has an active account with 1.6 million followers. But President Donald Trump, who was the leader of the free world, was banned by Twitter," Media Research Center vice president Dan Gainor told Fox News Digital.
REPUBLICANS SLAM BIG TECH FOR BANNING CONSERVATIVES BUT ALLOWING KREMLIN TO PUSH DISINFO
Russian President Vladimir Putin is able to use Twitter to spread the Kremlin’s message. (Alexei Nikolsky/Sputnik/AFP via Getty Images)
"Twitter tolerates lies and propaganda from both sides of the Ukraine War but criticize COVID-19 policies and you get suspended," Gainor added. "It’s utterly insane."
Eyebrows were raised across Twitter on Monday morning when the social media juggernaut allowed a verified, Russian account to claim Ukraine attacked its own nuclear facility.
"Attacks against their own nuclear facilities have become the signature of the current Ukrainian regime. The blame for this lies squarely with Kiev, the American masters of Vladimir Zelensky and US vassals in @NATO," Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs shared to nearly 500,000 followers.
Despite the tweet, Russian forces have put staff at Europe's largest nuclear plant under their command and cut off its ability to communicate with Ukraine's nuclear regulator, according to the United Nations International Atomic Energy Agency.
The Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant, which is located about 350 miles southeast of Kyiv, was originally seized by Russian troops on March 4 after an adjacent five-story training facility was set on fire by a Russian projectile.
The IAEA accused Russia of violating key safety guidelines governing nuclear plants, including that "operating staff must be able to fulfill their safety and security duties and have the capacity to make decisions free of undue pressure," and that there must be "reliable communications with the regulator and others."
The UN's nuclear watchdog also expressed concern about the Chernobyl nuclear plant – the site of one of the world’s worst nuclear disasters after a reactor exploded in 1986 – in northern Ukraine, which was captured by Russian forces on the first day of the invasion.
The tweet from Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs quickly caught the attention of critics.
German journalist Clemens Wergin tweeted, "Orwell called from the grave and said that you should put more effort into making your lies believable if you want to be a true Orwellian state."
Israeli reporter Noga Tarnoplsy asked, "Who are these lies aimed for?"
Another Israeli reporter responded, "Unprecedented spreading lies. How much longer can you put up with it? The Russians think the whole world is dumb. Cheeky false culture."
Fox News contributor Joe Concha pointed out that Twitter didn’t seem particularly bothered about the "disinformation" being pushed on its platform.
"The Politburo at Twitter apparently has no issue with verified Russian accounts pushing disinformation, apparently," Concha wrote.
Another account, belonging to the Kremlin itself, has 1.6 million followers. It is often used to promote Putin’s talking points and share flattering images of the Russian leader.
The Kremlin's verified account has added 200,000 followers in recent days for a total of 1.6 million.
Montreal Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies executive director Kyle Matthews added, "Twitter continues to allow a govt, that bans its own citizens from this platform mind you, to spread falsehoods and disinformation, while it is bombing cities and killing civilians. Shameful."
Last week, Twitter’s public relations department never responded to a detailed request asking for clarification on why Russian state accounts are allowed to use the platform. Fox News Digital followed up on Monday asking if Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs violated the company’s policy but did not immediately receive a response.
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Twitter’s official rules state that users are not allowed to "threaten or promote terrorism or violent extremism," "engage in the targeted harassment," or "promote violence against, threaten, or harass other people on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, caste, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, religious affiliation, age, disability, or serious disease," among other transgressions. It also specifically states that Twitter cannot be used "for the purpose of manipulating or interfering in elections or other civic processes," but the word "propaganda" is not mentioned on the page.
Twitter did not immediately respond when asked if a ban on state propaganda will be added to its rules.
During an interview with Fox News Digital, National Center for Public Policy Research executive vice president Justin Danhof recently said Twitter at least needs to shut down disinformation related to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine if it's not going to treat all Americans equally.
"I think that where actual violence is occurring, on any level, if you have ability to curb violence, I think you should use your power for good," Danhof said.
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Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., recently blasted Big Tech as a "joke" for allowing Russia's "disinformation" on its platforms while barring conservatives.
"Honestly, I think Big Tech is a joke at this point. You know, if you were going to censor conservatives with their thoughts about, you know, vaccines or their thoughts about, you know, the 2020 elections, but you're not going to take the Russians off the platform who are literally putting out disinformation – not misinformation – disinformation about what's happened in Ukraine? I think it's a joke," Donalds told Fox News Digital last month at CPAC.
"I think it's atrocious," he added. "They need to actually be consistent."
Fox News’ Paul Best and Joseph A. Wulfsohn contributed to this report.
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