Twitter has announced new guidelines on responsible speech, saying it may hide tweets by current or aspiring government officials which constitute hate speech or disinformation.
I chat with BBC Radio 4 about why the guidance is a necessary first step, but why Twitter could go farther in deleting hate-speech tweets and/or temporarily suspend the perpetrator — offering the example of Donald Trump’s circulation of Islamophobic videos; inflammatory statements about immigrants, people of color, and women; spread of disinformation and conspiracy theories; and advocacy of attacks on journalists.
I am joined by Trump supporter Tony Shaffer, who claims the guidelines are an “Orwellian conspiracy”, denounces “leftist professors”, and — intriguingly — alleges that our conversation on hate speech…could be construed as hate speech.
