BEIJING, Beijing, November 4 (Chen Caixia) "# Trump is dead #" & mdash; — Recently, this tag was posted on Twitter’s hot search list. In less than an hour, it received more than 20,000 likes and thousands of reposts, which triggered a hot discussion among netizens.
Is this former American president really dead?
Of course not. This is a tag created by American comedian Tim Heidecker to test Twitter’s new content censorship mechanism.
Test: Is it right or wrong for Musk to "loosen" Twitter?
Why did Haidekker do this?
In fact, his spearhead is not aimed at Trump, but the new owner of Twitter — — Musk.
Image source: Haidekker Twitter screenshot
"I am very sad, Trump seems to be dying." Haidekker wrote. "In fact, he may have a very serious disease, and he died of it."
Subsequently, a large number of netizens joined the team that spread false news, and some even imitated CNN and other media to report the news that "Trump passed away at the age of 76".
Screenshot of CNN fake report "Trump is dead" made by Twitter users.
According to the report of Newsweek, the deliberate spread of the false news of "Trump is dead" is actually a satire and provocation to Musk’s relaxation of Twitter content review and a test of the tightness of the new censorship mechanism. Because the outside world is worried that Musk will encourage the crazy spread of false information, hate speech and conspiracy theories on Twitter and become a safe haven for sprayers and conspiracy theorists.
In view of the huge influence of the platform in the world, Twitter has been tightening control over the past few years to crack down on false or discriminatory dangerous statements.
However, after Musk took over Twitter, in addition to "changing blood" for the company’s executives, he also planned to relax the review of the content to make it more in line with his vision. He had intended to cancel the rule of permanently banning users. In addition, he also preached that he was a "free speech absolutist" and vowed that as long as the rumor itself was not illegal, he would not delete the title at will.
Although Yoel Roth, head of Twitter’s security and integrity, said that during the transition period when Musk took over, Twitter’s rules were "still being implemented on a large scale", American business insider websites reported that after Musk entered Twitter, the number of employees who were allowed to delete such content was limited, which led to an exponential increase in the use of defamation and hate speech on Twitter.
Up to now, those posts claiming that Trump is "dead" have not been blocked. Musk wrote in a post after the fermentation of this matter: "Twitter resonates with the masochist in all of us … … The price you pay will be rewarded! "
Worried: Twitter fears a new wave of fake election information.
Over the years, Twitter has gradually evolved into an important political tool, providing politicians and activists around the world with the ability to reach millions of people. According to a survey by the Pew Research Center, an American polling agency, the core user group of Twitter is about a quarter of American adults.
Musk vowed to "untie" Twitter and release this "blue bird", which caused concern and anxiety in American political circles. The mid-term election on November 8 is approaching, and political and media experts believe that a new wave of false election information will be set off.
The US "Politician" website pointed out that the Republican Party, especially Trump’s supporters, regarded Musk as a "savior" and liberated them from the shackles of silence.
The Democratic Party is worried that the loosening of Twitter will make Trump supporters publicize extreme right views or false election fraud information on Twitter. At present, the Democratic Party has only a slight advantage in both houses of Congress. Republican leaders have made it clear that if the party returns to Congress, it will definitely block the bill promoted by Democratic President Biden.
"This is an earthquake," Democratic strategist Abby Rahman said. "If Trump runs for president again in 2024, Twitter may help spread any lies he wants about elections and voting." (End)
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