The “Twitter Files” releases continue to show the federal government’s deep and here-to-fore unknown involvement with suppressing the speech of the platform’s subscribers.
On Friday, the latest batch of information revealed that communication between the FBI and Twitter executives led to the social media platform taking down selected political speech. New majority owner of Twitter Elon Musk has allowed a small group of hand-selected journalists access to the company’s insider emails and other communications, which have revealed information embarrassing to some federal agencies, especially the Department of Justice.
It’s no wonder that liberals such as Rep. Adam Schiff have gone after Musk publicly. They have a lot to worry about.
“Twitter’s contact with the FBI was constant and pervasive, as if it were a subsidiary,” independent journalist Matt Taibbi wrote early in the Tweet thread that was titled, “The Twitter Files, Part Six TWITTER, THE FBI SUBSIDIARY.”
“2. The #TwitterFiles are revealing more every day about how the government collects, analyzes, and flags your social media content,” Taibbi continued. “3. Twitter’s contact with the FBI was constant and pervasive, as if it were a subsidiary.”
“Between January 2020 and November 2022, there were over 150 emails between the FBI and former Twitter Trust and Safety chief Yoel Roth.”
“Some are mundane,” Taibbi wrote, “like San Francisco agent Elvis Chan wishing Roth a Happy New Year along with a reminder to attend “our quarterly call next week.” Others are requests for information into Twitter users related to active investigations.”
Taibbi continued: “a surprisingly high number are requests by the FBI for Twitter to take action on election misinformation, even involving joke tweets from low-follower accounts.”
The FBI’s social media-focused task force, known as FTIF, created in the wake of the 2016 election, swelled to 80 agents and corresponded with Twitter to identify alleged foreign influence and election tampering of all kinds, Taibbi wrote in his Twitter report.
Taibbi continued: “Federal intelligence and law enforcement reach into Twitter included the Department of Homeland Security, which partnered with security contractors and think tanks to pressure Twitter to moderate content.”
It’s no secret the government analyzes bulk data for all sorts of purposes, everything from tracking terror suspects to making economic forecasts, he wrote. “The #TwitterFiles show something new: agencies like the FBI and DHS regularly sending social media content to Twitter through multiple entry points, pre-flagged for moderation.”
Read Matt Taibbi’s report thread here.
Meanwhile, journalists have gone ballistic after Musk suspended the accounts of those who have provided real-time tracking of his private jet, which imperiled his child’s life. Musk said on Twitter that accounts that dox people will be suspended. Doxxing is a form of online harassment and intentionally inviting harassment and endangerment of individuals by publishing their addresses, phone numbers, and exact whereabouts.
Even Rep. Schiff couldn’t resist criticizing Musk for suspending some journalists who doxxed Musk’s family.
“Elon Musk calls himself a free speech absolutist, to justify turning a blind eye to hatred and bigotry on Twitter. But when journalists report unfavorable news, they are banned without warning. The devotion to free speech is apparently not that absolute. But the hypocrisy is,” Schiff wrote.
The leftist who created the “ElonJets,” tracking account attempted to extort Musk on CNN, saying he would leave Musk alone in exchange for $50,000.
