Twitter permanently suspends AOC parody account for being misleading
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Twitter banned the account @AOCPress, labeled as a "parody," on Monday, apparently because it sounded too much like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., while mocking her.
The social media giant also suspended the account's creator, Michael Morrison. It said that while users could create parody accounts, they couldn't use "misleading account information in order to engage in spamming, abusive, or disruptive behavior including attempts to manipulate the conversations on Twitter."
“You also may not 'post duplicative or substantially similar content, replies, or mentions over multiple accounts or multiple duplicate updates on one account, or create duplicate or substantially similar accounts.’ This account will not be reinstated,” an email from the company read.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Morrison told Human Events he believed Twitter banned the account because it had grown so much over a short period of time. “In the past month and a half alone, the account grew by roughly 50,000 followers. We’ve had tweets with over 30,000 likes on them, so I think Twitter decided it was time for [the account] to go," he said.
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"They didn’t like how popular an account created by their political opposition had become.”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}On Twitter, many, including the president's son, blasted the decision to ban his account.
"What's the deal here @jack? Because it sure looks like political bias," Donald Trump Jr. said.
Others mocked the freshman congresswoman, who has become a magnet for criticism after making certain statements and proposing government policies.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The ban came as many decried censorship on social media platforms like Facebook, which announced on Thursday that it had banned controversial activists — Milo Yiannopoulos, Louis Farrakhan, Laura Loomer, Alex Jones, and Paul Joseph Watson — for apparently promoting or engaging in violence or hate.
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“We’ve always banned individuals or organizations that promote or engage in violence and hate, regardless of ideology. The process for evaluating potential violators is extensive and it is what led us to our decision to remove these accounts today,” Facebook said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Twitter has also banned an account parodying former Rep. Beto O'Rourke, D-Texas, and another that mocked Russian president Vladimir Putin.
The issue caught President Donald Trump's attention, prompting him to tweet his dismay over the decision.
"I am continuing to monitor the censorship of AMERICAN CITIZENS on social media platforms," he told his followers. "This is the United States of America — and we have what’s known as FREEDOM OF SPEECH! We are monitoring and watching, closely!!"
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Conservatives have offered differing opinions on the issue. While some have argued that Facebook infringed on the commentators' civil rights, others claimed that the social media giant had no legal obligation to host their commentary.