Twitter proprietor Musk tweets conspiracy idea about violent Pelosi assault

New Twitter proprietor Elon Musk tweeted an anti-LGBT conspiracy idea Sunday about what occurred the night time US Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband was attacked, underscoring issues concerning the platform’s future after he vowed it will not turn into a “free-for-all hellscape.”

Musk, a self-declared “free speech absolutist,” was responding to former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, who had tweeted to attract a line between Republicans who promote baseless conspiracy theories and the violent assault on Paul Pelosi in San Francisco.

“There is a tiny possibility there might be more to this story than meets the eye,” Musk advised Clinton, attaching a hyperlink to the story, which is now not accessible, by the conservative Santa Monica Observer.

The weekly outlet has printed different conspiracy theories up to now, together with {that a} physique double for Clinton was despatched to a debate with Donald Trump throughout the 2016 election campaign, in response to the Los Angeles Times.

Musk’s tweet swiftly turned a focal point for critics who’ve been nervous concerning the path during which he intends to take Twitter, the main platform for world discourse and diplomacy.

Musk, whose outspoken and controversial tweets have courted bother up to now, has vowed to dial again content material moderation, relying extra on pc algorithms than human screens. Conservatives say previous moderation has unfairly focused their views.

In a message meant to reassure jittery Twitter advertisers on his management, Musk stated earlier this week that he realizes Twitter “cannot become a free-for-all hellscape where anything can be said with no consequences.”

But detractors warn that with out requirements, the world’s “digital town square” is prone to turning into flooded with misinformation, with presumably perilous penalties for democracy and public health.

“Clinton: Conspiracy theories are getting people killed and we shouldn’t amplify them. Owner of Twitter: But have you considered this conspiracy theory?” wrote University of Denver political scientist Seth Masket after Musk’s Sunday tweet.

Masket later tweeted a screenshot suggesting he had complained to Twitter about Musk’s tweet, including: “Somehow I doubt much will come of this.”

Troll marketing campaign assessments Musk

Nancy Pelosi, who’s second in line to the US presidency, has stated her household is “heartbroken and traumatized” after the intruder broke into the couple’s San Francisco residence early Friday and attacked Paul Pelosi with a hammer, fracturing his cranium.

The 82-year-old is recovering in hospital.

President Joe Biden has stated it seems the assault was “intended for Nancy,” and known as out more and more polarizing political rhetoric.

“The Republican Party and its mouthpieces now usually unfold hate and deranged conspiracy theories. It is surprising, however not stunning, that violence is the end result,” Clinton stated in her tweet.

Musk’s response got here simply hours after Twitter stated that the location was being focused by a trolling marketing campaign testing its moderation insurance policies below the billionaire’s management.

“Twitter’s policies haven’t changed… And we’re taking steps to put a stop to an organized effort to make people think we have,” tweeted the platform’s chief of security and integrity, Yoel Roth.

Roth stated {that a} “small number of accounts” had posted “a ton” of hate content material—together with 50,000 tweets utilizing a selected slur made by simply 300 accounts.

“Nearly all” of the accounts are inauthentic, he stated.

Roth additionally retweeted a Musk put up during which the Tesla chief reiterated that “we have not yet made any changes to Twitter’s content moderation policies.”

© 2022 AFP