This week Meta-owned Instagram launched Threads, a Twitter competitor, aiming to diversify its services. In a surprise to no one, Threads immediately started censoring and putting warning labels on the accounts of conservative users. The launch of Threads raises important questions about the Meta’s control over information, evident through early censorship of conservative users, and also about the role of alternative platforms like Gab.com in countering the dominance of big tech oligarchs.
Posts tagged as “gab”
While we were all enjoying the fireworks on the 4th of July a significant development that could have profound implications for the relationship between the government and social media platforms was unfolding in the courts. A federal judge has issued a preliminary injunction restraining key agencies and officials of the Biden administration from engaging with tech companies in matters related to the suppression of protected speech. This ruling was initiated in response to a lawsuit brought forth by Republican attorneys general from Louisiana and Missouri and marks a pivotal moment in the fight for free speech.
This legal action was prompted by allegations that government officials had overstepped their boundaries by urging social media platforms to address posts that could incite vaccine hesitancy during the COVID-19 pandemic or influence elections.
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic the battle for free speech intensified as governments and social media platforms grappled with the challenge of moderating content related to the origins of covid, the vaccine, masks, lockdowns, and other related information. While many platforms succumbed to the pressure to censor information at the behest of the government, one platform stood firm in its commitment to freedom of speech: Gab.
Nearly everything that is publicly accessible on the Internet is being “scraped” or downloaded by various sources. In the beginning, it was primarily search engines doing this, but this has been forever expanding to include archive sites, researchers, advertising shops, government agencies, and many more organizations who are hungry for data to collect and analyze. It is a fact of life on the open web, and something we at Gab are very familiar with.
Gab News can exclusively report that members of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Homeland Security have requested that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) examine the utilization of social media and gaming platforms by “domestic extremists.”
Part of Gab’s mission is to export the First Amendment to the entire world. To do this we regularly must tell foreign governments to pound sand when they make requests for user data and demand that we censor content that is protected by the First Amendment.
Each time our answer is the same: get lost.
Our purchasing decisions have massive implications beyond simply satisfying our immediate needs or desires. When we buy a product or support a business we inadvertently contribute to the values and principles these businesses uphold. This in turn influences the culture which then influences political action in our society.
The existing infrastructure and cultural norms in the West are increasingly hostile or incompatible with Christian values. In response to this reality many of us are turning towards the idea of building our own parallel infrastructure and communities, not unlike the pilgrims who were seeking new land and religious freedom during the early days of America. Unfortunately there is nowhere left to run to. Every country on earth is subjected to the globalist regime in one form or another and so we can’t just physically pack up our things, move to new lands, and form our own nation–at least not yet.
Thankfully with the power of technology we might not have to.
Christians are often confronted with challenges that test their faith and convictions. In the face of today’s moral ambiguity and cultural relativism it is essential for believers to stand firm in their understanding of the Truth and take bold action. Christians need to shed their fears, refuse to tolerate evil, and remember to operate within the moral framework of the Creator God.
In today’s clown world people are seeking effective means to express their beliefs and fight for causes they hold dear. While protests, social media activism, and political engagement are common approaches, a lesser-known yet powerful weapon in the culture war lies in our purchasing power. The ability to shape corporate behavior and culture through our consumer choices can have a profound impact on the direction society takes. Our purchasing power has a profound impact and we need to start using it more. We can no longer support brands that promote worldviews that are diametrically opposed to Truth. We need to continue making examples of brands who do these things by refusing to purchase their products and services.
Recent events involving Twitter and Elon Musk complying with the Turkish government’s request to censor political content during their elections have raised concerns about the potential consequences for free speech.
Late Friday evening Twitter released a statement noting “In response to legal process and to ensure Twitter remains available to the people of Turkey, we have taken action to restrict access to some content in Turkey today.” On Saturday some journalists picked up on this statement and noted that “free speech” Twitter was complying with foreign government demands for censorship.
This week Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida made a trip to Israel to sign HB 269, a bill that makes it a felony with up to five years in jail for passing out “offensive” flyers or pamphlets. This move has been widely criticized by free speech advocates and legal experts as a gross violation of the First Amendment. The bill states that anyone distributing “any material for the purpose of intimidating or threatening the owner” could be convicted of a felony “hate crime.” While we often write about the “hate speech” rules on Big Tech platforms, this is far worse. This is the state of Florida violating the First Amendment of the United States.
In 1519, the Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés arrived in the New World with a mission to conquer the Aztec Empire. He arrived with a small army of 600 men, but he faced a significant challenge. His men were afraid and they were not sure that they could succeed in their mission. To inspire his men Cortés did something radical – he burned his ships. By doing so he eliminated any possibility of retreat and forced his men to fight for victory or death. This act of burning the ships became a symbol of determination and commitment.