reaction to alex jones bein banned

Freedom Rider: Social Media’s Danger to the Black Left
“The move against Alex Jones will be used to defend further censoring of left wing voices.”

https://www.blackagendareport.com/freedom-rider-social-medias-danger-black-left

Of course Black Agenda Report utilizes social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube to communicate with readers. Any individual or organization who needs to connect with large groups of people does so as well. But our adversaries know that too and have embarked on unprecedented efforts to diminish black and left voices or silence them altogether. The change was announced quite publicly in November 2016 when the Jeff Bezos owned Washington Postpresented the infamous Propornotlist. This anonymous group claimed that some 200 sites, including Black Agenda Report, were susceptible to Russian propaganda, hence the propaganda or not label.

Now the attack is a bit more subtle but quite effective. Individuals and groups find themselves “ghost banned,” unable to post on social media platforms but never given a reason why. YouTube subscribers find themselves unsubscribed. YouTube channels are demonetized and unable to earn revenue if they cover left leaning political issues. The search engine reach of organizations like Black Agenda Report have been diminished on Google.

“Police invented a persona, Bob Smith, who was able to ‘friend’ individuals with a fake story of activism.”

There is also an old school frontal assault reminiscent of the FBI’s infamous Counter Intelligence Program, COINTELPRO. The police department in Memphis, Tennessee used Facebook to spy on Black Lives Matter activists. They even invented a persona, Bob Smith, who was able to “friend” individuals with a fake story of activism and then monitor their movements, plans and announcements. Any event that attracted a black audience was targeted, private information was collected and shared with law enforcement across the country, public utilities and private corporations such as Fedex.

The benefits of social media are obvious. But left activists must rethink how or even whether to use platforms which are both useful and dangerous. We may find new comrades and associates on Facebook and Twitter but we can also find the Bob Smiths of the world. We must remember that mass movements existed long before the invention of the world wide web. The internet was in its infancy when the Million Man March took place in 1995. Somehow more than 1 million people knew they were to be in Washington on a specific date and time. We don’t have to relegate ourselves to a problematic enterprise in order to make ourselves known and heard.

“The internet was in its infancy when the Million Man March took place in 1995.”

It is time to take a serious look at our dependence on Facebook, which Julian Assange called, “The most appalling spy machine ever invented.” Every serious activist should take a look at how they contact other people. It isn’t necessary to give up social media altogether but it is essential to have phone numbers, email and written addresses for anyone we may wish to contact. Old fashioned address books gathering dust need to be resurrected.

The system that we critique so assiduously is quite serious about limiting our effectiveness when it can’t do away with our organizations altogether. An accusation of being a Russian bot or a fake news site is enough to consign one to social media oblivion and the inability to communicate at all.

In short, they are coming after us and they will use many ruses to do it. Right wing pundit Alex Jones was recently kicked off of Facebook, Twitter and YouTube for violations of terms of service. There is nothing new about Jones antics. He has been violating those terms for years without consequence. The sudden concern for what he has done for years is highly suspect. Some observers believe that he is in fact a United States intelligence asset.

“Old fashioned address books gathering dust need to be resurrected.”

There is no reason for anyone on the left to cheer Jones being censored. The move against him will be used to defend further censoring of left wing voices. There will always be Alex Jones like characters on social media. His absence helps no one except the intelligence apparatus who will find new ways to use our words and activities against us.

We are living in an era when every person on the planet is under surveillance, regardless of their ideology or political activity.The National Security Agency (NSA) has records of every email and every phone call made in the country. The Boston Globerecently revealed the existed of a program called Quiet Skies , which has the power to put any air traveler under direct, physical surveillance from federal air marshals. Behavior such as “Reversing or changing direction and/or stopping in transit in an airport, boarding last, or observing the boarding gate from afar,” can guarantee that a traveler will unknowingly be accompanied by an air marshal on their next flight.

“Every person on the planet is under surveillance, regardless of their ideology or political activity.”

Social media is dangerous precisely because we use it voluntarily. We voluntarily provide personal information to strangers at Facebook, which is seen as harmless and even benign. But Facebook recently decided that planned demonstrations against white supremacists in Washington were created on orders from the Kremlin and removed their informationfrom the site which everyone uses to promote their activity.

The dystopian world of the novel 1984 is here but in an even worse way than Orwell imagined. In his imagination Big Brother interposed himself into the lives of ordinary people. But in 2018 the people are giving their enemies information that may be used to harm them. Humans are loathe to go backwards but that is what we must start considering. We may well have to time travel to the days of rotary phones and pieces of paper. Otherwise we are giving our enemies ammunition that they will surely use.

wv wrote:

Anybody got any opinions on whether it was a good idea to ban the loathesome-disgusting-weasel Alex Jones?

w
v

I go back and forth on it. I understand Camp’s point that banning Jones may have opened a door to the banning of leftist sites like Redacted Tonight. On the other hand the collective IQ of the country went up 30 points the minute after it happened.

And besides, that could happen anyway, Jones or no Jones, right? Facebook, Youtube, etc are all privately owned companies. They have a right to determine what content is suitable for their sites. And the content policies change depending on which way the wind is blowing. Facebook has a content policy that one could argue Jones has been violating for years. Some might ask why has it taken this long for Facebook to ban him.

And of course Jones is free to start his own social media platform. I’m surprised he didn’t already have one. I’m sure he has enough followers who would pony up some cash to support it.

But I guess I’m in the “Let’s wait and see what happens” box. I’m happy about anything that impacts Infowars in a negative way but I am a little apprehensive about what this means for the future of political content on free social media.

TSRF wrote:

Got some skin in the game.

Never want to see his face again and I hope he rots in Hell forever (Preferably in a different Hell than the one I’m going to go to).

Sincerely,
Matt

Yes it;s personal for you isn’t it.

.

As others have already mentioned, there isn’t any correlation between banning Jones and banning leftists. They’re going to do the latter regardless, if that’s their wont.

The two are totally disconnected.

Plus, Alex Jones is a truly special case. His demented rants have actually provoked his listeners to go after survivors of gun massacres, threaten them with death, force them into hiding. Jones accuses them of being “crisis actors” and they get death threats because of that.

People who survive gun maniacs have to live in fear thanks to the fascist slimeball Jones.

Leftists, as far as I know, don’t whip up their audiences into a frenzy like that.

Oh, and in case the right protests about “free speech”: It’s not in play when a person is banned from a media outlet. No one has a “right” to someone else’s platform, communication vehicle, or amplification device. We can say whatever we want, as long as it doesn’t incite violence, but we have no special rights to platforms for speech.

. . .

(I can’t accurately assert that my “free speech rights” were violated by the Herd, for instance. I can assert, with a strong rationale, however, that they acted in a cowardly and unfair manner.)

• This reply was modified 6 years, 3 months ago by Billy_T.

Billy_T, thanks for posting.

ZN, yes; this is very personal for me.

So many people I know who will never be the same (including me and mine), and to have this asshole actually praised by our president. Fucking mind blowing.