Twitter Permanently Suspends Marjorie Taylor Greene's Account - The New York Times
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
The social media service said the Republican congresswoman had violated its policy on coronavirus misinformation.
Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, of Georgia, at an event last month with another Republican, Representative Matt Gaetz of Florida.Credit...T.J. Kirkpatrick for The New York Times
By Davey Alba
Jan. 2, 2022Updated 2:53 p.m. ET
Twitter on Sunday permanently suspended the personal account of Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican of Georgia, after the company said she had violated its Covid-19 misinformation policies.
Twitter suspended Ms. Greene's account after she tweeted on Saturday, falsely, about "extremely high amounts of Covid vaccine deaths." She included a misleading chart that pulled information from a government database of unverified raw data called the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System, or VAERS, a decades-old system that relies on self-reported cases from patients and health care providers.
Twitter said that Ms. Greene had a fifth "strike," which meant that her account will not be restored. The company had issued her a fourth strike in August after she falsely posted that the vaccines were "failing." Ms. Greene was given a third strike less than a month before that when she had tweeted that Covid-19 was not dangerous and that vaccines should not be mandated.
Ms. Greene's official Congressional account, @RepMTG, remains active because tweets from that account did not violate the service's rules.
"We've been clear that, per our strike system for this policy, we will permanently suspend accounts for repeated violations of the policy," Katie Rosborough, a Twitter spokeswoman, said in a statement. The company allows accounts to submit an appeal and will potentially reverse the suspension if the violating post is proven to be factual.
On the alternative social messaging platform Telegram, Ms. Greene said that Twitter "is an enemy to America and can't handle the truth."
Her suspension comes as coronavirus cases have surged again in the United States from the highly infectious Omicron variant. New York State recorded over 85,000 new coronavirus cases on the last day of 2021, the highest one-day total in the state since the pandemic began, officials announced on Saturday.
Twitter has long banned users from sharing misinformation that could lead to harm. In rare cases, the company has permanently banned high-profile accounts, including the account of former President Donald J. Trump, over a risk of "further incitement of violence" after a mob of Trump loyalists stormed the U.S. Capitol last Jan. 6.
There is currently no evidence of widespread major side effects from the coronavirus vaccines. Last month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Johnson & Johnson's vaccine could trigger a rare blood clotting disorder now linked to dozens of cases and at least nine deaths in the United States in the past year. The agency recommended using other approved vaccines instead.
The VAERS database, which is managed by the Food and Drug Administration and the C.D.C., has been cited in many coronavirus falsehoods to push the idea that side effects from the Covid-19 vaccines have been widespread and serious.
In March, Twitter introduced a policy that explained the penalties for sharing lies about the virus and vaccines. People who violate that policy are subject to escalating punishments known as strikes and could face a permanent ban if they repeatedly share misinformation about the virus.
Ms. Greene won the election for Georgia's 14th Congressional District in August, after rising to prominence by posting unabashed support for President Trump and for QAnon, a movement tied to the baseless conspiracy theory that a group of global liberal elites run a child sex ring that Mr. Trump would stop.
Ms. Greene repeatedly posted the QAnon slogan on Facebook and Twitter and had previously called "Q" — the anonymous online account that set off the QAnon conspiracy movement — a "patriot" who was "worth listening to." Last year, Ms. Greene heavily promoted the false claim that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from Mr. Trump, tweeting in January that there was "MASS voter fraud on a scale that should terrify every American regardless of political party."
The Coronavirus Pandemic: Key Things to Know
The global surge. As the Omicron variant sweeps across the planet, the global tally of new coronavirus cases has for the first time passed one million per day on average. The previous daily average global case record set last April has already been broken three times this week.
Canceled flights. With Covid surge, has come thousands of flight cancellations, as airlines are unable to adequately staff their flights. Looking for relief, the airline industry pushed the CDC to shorten its recommended isolation period for Americans infected with Covid-19. On Monday, it reduced the recommended quarantine period to five days for those without symptoms.
Around the world. South Africa announced that its Omicron wave had passed without a large spike in deaths. Case counts in the country are down 30 percent in the last week. The announcement offered cautious hope to other countries grappling with the fast-spreading variant.
Staying safe. Worried about spreading Covid? Keep yourself and others safe by following some basic guidance on when to test and how to use at-home virus tests (if you can find them). Here is what to do if you test positive for the coronavirus.
But it was Ms. Greene's false proclamations about the coronavirus, including opposing vaccines and masks as tools to curb the pandemic, that finally got her suspended from Twitter. In July, Ms. Greene argued that Covid-19 was not dangerous for people unless they were obese or over age 65, and said vaccines should not be required.
In August, Ms. Greene said on Twitter, "The F.D.A. should not approve the covid vaccines." She said that there were too many reports of infection and the spread of the coronavirus among vaccinated people, and that the vaccines were "failing" and "do not reduce the spread of the virus & neither do masks."
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's current guidance states, "Covid-19 vaccines are effective against severe disease and death."
Imran Ahmed, the chief executive of the Center for Countering Digital Hate, which published research on the dozen most prominent social media influencers spreading misinformation about vaccines, said it suited Ms. Greene to portray her suspension as part of a pattern of moves by Twitter to censor conservatives.
"In fact, it is for the banal reason that she's a superspreader of lies" that Ms. Greene was suspended, Mr. Ahmed said.
He also criticized Twitter for not doing more to be consistent in its suspensions of high-profile users who post misinformation. "While the suspension of Representative Greene's account for propagating deadly disinformation appears to be a valid enforcement of stated rules, it is the piecemeal enforcement that lends itself to being perceived as political," Mr. Ahmed said.
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Kudos to Twitter for banning the no good lying troll...
Boebert is next to go.
I wish we could put Twitter in charge of the hill. It would be one way to get rid of some of its aholes.
By tomorrow she'll be accusing the ''deep state'' for the permanent suspension.
More typical big tech social media censorship. Being censored by Twitter or in the arrow tip of MBFC is a badge of honor to wear with pride.
Badge of Honor? No, it's more, "The Hall of Shame".
.
Tell me he was not serious with that crap.
MAGA trolls stick together.
Like shit on a stick...
Yes.
One has to be quite ignorant to be permanently suspended by Twitter. Good to see that she proves once again that she is ignorant of almost anything that requires an IQ above 50.
An "honor" only really shared by right wing conservative extremists, terrorist organizations, Russian bots, Neo-Nazi's, racists, homophobes, rapists and pedophiles.
More like dishonor. I mean really, engaging in activities that gets one suspended or banned from Twitter or similar social media platforms? How low does one need to go to accomplish that particular "honor?"
More like no tolerance for lies or misinformation, which is a good thing!
Too bad Perrie doesn't do the same with a few of the chronic liars here.
Hate and disinformation do drag a site down.
She will try to open a new account just like Trump did twice after getting banned.
Trolls and reregs are usually one and the same...
Applauding the censorship of someone's free speech due to one's hatred of the person reminded me of Martin Niemöller's 1946 remorseful poem:
.
Be careful what you wish for.
Except Green got banned for contunually breaking Twitter's code of conduct and terms of service...
You, if anyone, should know how that goes down.
If that were true, Twitter would have permanently banned the Ayatollah Khomeini years ago. That terrorist still has an account.
If that were true, Twitter would have banned various known Taliban terrorists. They, too, still have accounts.
If that were true, Twitter wouldn't have waited 12 hours to block racist "Uncle Tim" trends that targeted Senator Tim Scott.
Tell me something, JBB ... can you name three (3) left-wing Americans who have been suspended and/or banned by Twitter?
The left tends to be more honest and propaganda free than the right.
We've seen that "honesty" repeatedly reported by CNN, MSNBC, NYT, WaPo, and other left-wing media: Russia hoax, "Trump's" kids in cages, Sandmann, Kavanaugh, Rittenhouse, Hunter Biden's laptop and "the big guy", Fauci/Walensky/CDC/NIH contradictions, ad nauseam.
If left-leaning Twitter were truly honest, it would ban sex/drug traffickers and Islamic terrorists who currently have active accounts.
List of people censored by Twitter - Infogalactic: the planetary knowledge core
Berenson is a Yale grad....
So is Wolf, a former political adviser to both Gore and Bill Clibton.
Ayyadurai claims to be n Independent.
Oops,
but not a leftist...
It seems he's confusing the right of a private company to decide what's acceptable in their business...with the very different rules applying to governments.
Maybe he's secretly a Socialist...? (In which case he would probably feel that NT has no right to have (and enforce) the CoC?
And perhaps he feels that by doing so NT is doing what the Nazis did?
First NT mods came for those who used Meta in comments! Then they came for those who engaged in personal attacks!
Oh... the horror of it all!
Ouch!
That's gonna leave a mark....
Truth/reality = liberal
I think many progressives crave censorship of dissenting opinion. One need only view the moderation in certain social media groups to show just how intolerant they are.
Why should BS, lies, or misinformation be tolerated?
Lol. It’s more like snowflakes need their safe bubble.
one need not go far to see I’m right
Green is banned for posting lies/disinformation.
It's more like some do not appreciate dishonesty. Interesting how you do not seem to mind it.
I asked you a very legitimate, on-topic question in comment 7.1.1 but you didn't answer.
Here's my question:
I look forward to your reply.
Notable Twitter suspensions
I ignored you because if you don't know that Twitter and Facebook have both banned hundreds of thousands of accounts for abusing their terms of service you have taken your victimhood too far. The banned span the political spectrum. [ deleted ]
Intolerant? That's a matter of opinion. After all, one man's meat is another man's poisson!
There I go again, mixing my metaphors. (Athough truth be told I like my metaphors shaken not stirred!)
The suspensions seemed totally warranted until I saw this one.
Suspended for tweets about the fictional character Baby Yoda. Seriously? It is a flipping character from a movie. I doubt its feelings were hurt or his reputation destroyed.
I knew about Twitter, but not FB. Grand Slam!
Wow!
Your excitement is palpable!
Thanks for an international list. I feel that the Japanese man who made a death threat against a dead mosquito is hilariously notable.
It was a convenient list in one spot.
Split P answered your question in comment 7.1.5. That not good enough for you?
First a private capitalist social media company banned the terrorists for breaking their code of conduct
And I spoke out
Because I was not banned and didn't violate their CoC
Then a private capitalist social media company banned the Russian bots for breaking their code of conduct
And I spoke out
Because I was not banned and didn't violate their CoC
Then a private capitalist social media company banned the Neo-Nazi's and other racists for breaking their code of conduct
And I spoke out
Because I was not banned and didn't violate their CoC
Then a private capitalist social media company banned the Anti-Semites breaking their code of conduct
And I spoke out
Because I was not banned and didn't violate their CoC
Then a private capitalist company banned me for violating the COC
And there were only dozens of other private social media companies
that would still speak out for me...
So here I am, whining and complaining on one of dozens of other social media websites, about my freedom of speech being infringed even though it was not congress or any government that banned me...
After many years on Social Media Sites I've discovered that many of their users have some interesting personality traits in common... I think of them as The Perpetually Outraged.
Being banned by Twitter is not censorship. Censorship only applies to the government fining or arresting you for your speech or actions, so unless you can prove that the government was behind her ban you didn't have an example of censorship.
Twitter is private property and banning her is no different than Perrie enforcing the TOS on this site.
Twitter is a private company. When did Republicans turn against capitalism?
Incorrect. Twitter, Inc (TWTR) is a public company.
I do not have a political affiliation, so I suggest you ask someone who is registered with the Republican Party..
You know what I mean...it's not a government entity. It has shareholders who are private people.
I would bet good money that you voted for the republican candidate for POTUS in the last 2 elections. And I would bet even better money that you are a capitalist
Sounds just like Mr. Right Down the Center. . . . .
I actually have more respect for RDC because he's not a phony
That's ok. LOL!
But you're a far more tolerant gal than I.
LOL! I'm really not. I'm a member of the "hate-filled left"
Interesting how you do not seem to mind it
I enjoy debunking the left's lies and dishonesty. It's a civic duty.
It's not a left or right issue. But thanks for demonstrating your bias for all to see. That certainly doesn't help your credibility.
Boop!
Boop indeed!
But not debunking the right's lies and dishonesty.
Why?
Not a "Civic Duty"?
Personally I think she is a bit of a wing nut. I don't really listen to anything she has to say. That is my choice, I don't need any company making the choice for me and chip away at her right of free speech.
Free speech is not free from consequences.
She doesn't have the right to spread lies and dis-mis-information.
And who is to be the judge of that? She is free to interpret as she sees fit. But I am interested, where in the constitution does it say free speech stops when someone doesn't think it is true? In case you haven't noticed politicians have been spinning the truth and lying for years without any repercussions, now the media has joined that bandwagon. Where are the consequences of saying Desantis was on vacation when he was actually still virtually working and going to support his wife's cancer treatment?
Free speech is not free from consequences.
She doesn't have the right to spread lies and dis-mis-information.
She has the right to say whatever she wants, you have the right to ignore it.
Those platforms have the right to deny her lies and mis-dis-information and PERMANENTLY BAN HER IGNORANT ASS.
The non-government owned social media company that this right wing extremists is trying to use to spread her lies and dis-mis-information.
Yes, she is, and the social media company is free to tell her to sell her shit elsewhere.
Where in the constitution does it say a non-government owned business is obligated to showcase random right wing conservative fuck-nut conspiracy theories and opinion?
Yes, politicians lie on both sides. None of that has anything to do with companies beholden to their shareholders and not run by the government deciding what content they want on their platform.
Again, doesn't make a fuck wad of difference, politicians, social media companies, random dip shits, everyone is entitled to their opinions whether true or false. If some right wing dipshit conservative is so fucking desperate to push their bullshit narrative and none of the existing social media companies are willing to be caught dead shilling their hilariously flawed non-logic and moronic narrative then they can go start their own fucking social media company. How is that so fucking hard for right wing conservatives to understand? Is it some sort of nation wide learning disability that they all share? There is no violation of the constitution, get over yourselves, the constant victim moaning to get attention is beyond old and tired, it's just really sad to watch.
Those platforms have the right to deny her lies and mis-dis-information and PERMANENTLY BAN HER IGNORANT ASS.