Top News:
Brian Stelter / CNN:
Nielsen: Joe Biden's ABC town hall averaged 13.9M viewers, while Trump's NBC town hall averaged 10.6M; MSNBC and CNBC simulcasts of Trump brought total to 13M — New York (CNN Business)Joe Biden's town hall on ABC averaged 13.9 million viewers on Thursday night, easily surpassing …
Discussion:
The Wrap, Ad Age, Variety, Mediaite, @jonkarl, New Yorker, Politico, @nbcphiladelphia, Hollywood Reporter, The A.V. Club, Los Angeles Times, Dallas Morning News, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Washington Post, USA Today, Salon, Washington Free Beacon, Associated Press, Variety, @cbouzy, @atrupar, @timcast, TVLine, Press Watch, The Week, @brianstelter, Vanity Fair, Crash Course, @moorehn, The Guardian, @hillaryclinton, @pattonoswalt, IndieWire, New York Times, Decider, The Hill, @juliancastro, @jayrosen_nyu, New York Post and UPI
Discussion:
Tony Maglio / The Wrap: Ratings: Biden's Town Hall on ABC Tops Trump's Simulcast Across NBC, MSNBC and CNBC
Jeanine Poggi / Ad Age: Biden wins ratings race in dueling town halls
Reed Richardson / Mediaite: MSNBC Suffers Sharp Drop from Average Thursday Ratings with Trump Town Hall; Fox Soars to 1M in Primetime Demo
Jonathan Karl / @jonkarl: SIREN! The Biden Town Hall on ABC drew 2.3 million more viewers than the Trump town hall on NBC. There is nothing @realDonaldTrump cares about more than ratings. https://variety.com/...
Susan B. Glasser / New Yorker: The Presidential Town Halls Were Mister Rogers Versus Nasty Uncle Trump
Matthew Choi / Politico: Biden town hall draws more viewers than Trump's
@nbcphiladelphia: Biden's ratings win is particularly surprising given Trump's town hall aired on two of NBCUniversal's cable channels, MSNBC and CNBC, in addition to the network. That means Biden beat out Trump despite the president's town hall only airing on one network. https://on.nbc10.com/04HYbbk https://twitter.com/...
Rick Porter / Hollywood Reporter: TV Ratings: Biden's ABC Town Hall Beats Trump on NBC in Early Numbers
Dallas Morning News: At dueling town halls, Trump lauds QAnon for opposing pedophilia and Biden stokes speculation on court packing
The Philadelphia Inquirer: Dueling town halls with Biden in Philly and Trump in Miami make for a 2020 split-screen moment
USA Today: COVID-19, QAnon and court packing: Here are the top moments from the Biden, Trump town halls
Dan Froomkin / Salon: A dueling town halls upside: Media finally focuses on the wide gulf between Biden and Trump
Andrew Stiles / Washington Free Beacon: Concast (NBC News) Loses 2020 Town Hall Ratings War Despite ‘Trump Boost’
Christopher Bouzy / @cbouzy: And there were people who said Trump would win because his town hall was aired across several networks; they were wrong. https://twitter.com/...
Aaron Rupar / @atrupar: Trump will take this harder than any poll showing him losing to Biden https://twitter.com/...
Tim Pool / @timcast: Add in the streaming ratings so far and it seems Trump is up just under one million viewers Makes sense considering conservatives don't trust mainstream news outlets The reality is that its fairly comparable and Trump barely pulled ahead https://twitter.com/...
Matt Webb Mitovich / TVLine: TV Ratings: Biden Town Hall Outdraws Trump's, Draws Younger Crowd
Dan Froomkin / Press Watch: Dueling town halls finally lead some reporters to address the extreme disequilibrium between Trump and Biden
Matthew Walther / The Week: The town halls weren't a debate — but Trump still won
Brian Stelter / @brianstelter: This is a result virtually no one in the TV biz expected. Staffers at ABC News privately admitted to their surprise when the Nielsen #'s came in. https://www.cnn.com/...
Christopher Rosen / Vanity Fair: It's Official: Biden Beats Trump in Town Hall Television Ratings
Ashley Anglisano / Crash Course: Biden, Trump host rival town halls after canceled online presidential debate
Heidi N. Moore / @moorehn: I care less that Trump is embarrassed than that NBC should be embarrassed. They've been treating Trump like a cash cow for ratings for over 15 years. Maybe now the network will see him as the liability that he is. https://twitter.com/...
David Smith / The Guardian: Trump condemned for QAnon dodge as Biden town hall wins TV ratings battle
Hillary Clinton / @hillaryclinton: Americans are sick of the Trump reality show. Let's cancel it for good, shall we? https://twitter.com/...
Patton Oswalt / @pattonoswalt: Donald what happened Donald you were on THREE networks and Joe was only on one network Donald what happened https://twitter.com/...
Liz Kocan / Decider: Trump Vs. Biden: Who Won The Town Hall Throwdown?
Julin Castro / @juliancastro: Joe Biden beat Donald Trump at his own ratings game. Americans are tired of Trump. They want the change Biden offers. https://twitter.com/...
Jay Rosen / @jayrosen_nyu: This won't slow the strange phenomenon of Twitter users who are hostile to Trump but totally convinced that he's a ratings juggernaut. https://twitter.com/...
RELATED:
Jeremy Barr / Washington Post:
Despite fears that the NBC town hall would amount to free promotion for Trump, Savannah Guthrie grilled him and repeatedly challenged his evasions — The network was criticized for accommodating Trump after he rejected a debate. But then the ‘Today’ host started asking him questions.
Discussion:
Columbia Journalism Review, New York Times, New York Magazine, The Atlantic, @peterhamby, Vox, TheGrio, CNN, BuzzFeed News, @alizaslav, @bristei, @simonowens, Vanity Fair, @nytimes, The Hill, @foxnews, @digiphile, @glamourmag, @mpdillon, @williegeist, @cjr, @thelilynews, @biancorobert, @jayrosen_nyu, @cbryanjones, @breakingchesky, @parkermolloy, Variety, Washingtonian, Morning Shots, Real Clear Politics, Poynter, Rolling Stone, Advanced Television, The Week, Decider, Newser, The Nation, The Week, The Guardian, New Republic, Mediaite, The Daily Beast, New York Times and YouGov
Discussion:
Jon Allsop / Columbia Journalism Review: Guthrie grills Trump, but NBC still has to answer for itself
Annie Karni / New York Times: Savannah Guthrie gets answers from Trump by setting a fast pace and following up.
David Frum / The Atlantic: The Final Season of the Trump Show
Peter Hamby / @peterhamby: Two days of How Dare You, NBC! takes conclude with an avalanche of applause tweets for @SavannahGuthrie. News cycles can be really dumb these days.
DeMicia Inman / TheGrio: Savannah Guthrie praised for Trump town hall performance
Brian Stelter / CNN: Savannah Guthrie's questions at NBC's town hall exposed Trump's warped information diet
David Mack / BuzzFeed News: Savannah Guthrie Compared Trump To A “Crazy Uncle” For Sharing False Bin Laden Conspiracy Theories
Ali Zaslav / @alizaslav: “By allowing Trump to rip up the rulebook, then rewarding him, NBC handed Trump a victory. Guthrie's interview doesn't change that. We continue, five years in, to eat out of his hand” @Jon_Allsop https://www.cjr.org/...
Brian Steinberg / @bristei: I don't know what NBC pays @SavannahGuthrie but execs should give her a whopping bonus this year bc she might just get them out of one of the company's biggest messes in years
Simon Owens / @simonowens: Alternate theory: the two days of harsh criticism forced NBC to go tough on Trump https://twitter.com/...
Bess Levin / Vanity Fair: Donald Trump Insists It's Entirely Possible Democrats Are Running a Satanic Pedophile Cult
@nytimes: Savannah Guthrie peppered President Trump during Thursday's town hall with a series of quick-paced, conversational questions that managed to put him on the spot and reveal his evasions in a way that few others have managed. https://www.nytimes.com/...
@foxnews: Critics pan NBC town hall, Savannah Guthrie for ‘debating’ Trump, ABC for giving ‘softballs’ to Biden https://www.foxnews.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Alex Howard / @digiphile: I remain disappointed in the decision by @NBCNews leadership — but @SavannahGuthrie was extraordinary last night: prepared, patient, & unflappable. https://www.boston.com/... One of the best public interviews of Trump since 2015 gave network executives cover for an unethical choice.
Glamour / @glamourmag: “Finally, FINALLY, an interviewer who asked Trump the tough questions and followed up.” 👏 https://glmr.co/mqIZmCn
Patrick Dillon / @mpdillon: @PeterHamby @SavannahGuthrie I mean, I do think believing a network giving a head-to-head townhall slot to an incumbent President who's blowing off debates is not a great precedent, and that she did a pretty solid job given the circumstances, are not wholly inconsistent or opposite beliefs
Willie Geist / @williegeist: .@SavannahGuthrie did an excellent job of drawing answers out of @POTUS tonight, as we all knew she would. Proud of my friend. https://twitter.com/...
@cjr: Savannah Guthrie did do well, pushing back effectively on many of Trump's lies. That, though, should really be a minimum standard for a Trump interview. https://www.cjr.org/...
@thelilynews: After pushing Trump on his retweet of a QAnon-linked conspiracy theory, Guthrie said, “I don't get that. You're the president. You're not like someone's crazy uncle who can just retweet whatever.” https://www.washingtonpost.com/ ...
Robert Bianco / @biancorobert: I'm glad Guthrie did well - but this headline is completely backwards. If NBC's broadcast was that newsworthy, it makes the foolish decision to schedule it opposite ABC's town hall and force viewers to choose all the more heinous. https://www.washingtonpost.com/ ...
Jay Rosen / @jayrosen_nyu: “Nor does Guthrie's generally good performance let NBC off the hook for its original, craven decision to counter-program Biden.” https://www.cjr.org/...
C Bryan Jones / @cbryanjones: Yes! @SavannahGuthrie was AMAZING! @SusanPage should take notes. This is how a real journalist asks questions of someone who evades and distracts with moronic nonsense. https://twitter.com/...
Morgan Chesky / @breakingchesky: Future journalists, or any for that matter should study @SavannahGuthrie's handling of tonight's town hall w/@POTUS. She set the pace, kept following up, and then some. https://www.nytimes.com/...
Parker Molloy / @parkermolloy: I'm pretty sure Guthrie would have been happy to have “a lofty policy discussion” with Trump, but whenever he's asked about health care, he simply said his place would be good and cheap and better and cheap. He speaks in catch-phrases, doesn't understand policy. https://twitter.com/...
Brian Steinberg / Variety: How Savannah Guthrie Helped Salvage NBC's Risky Bet on Town Hall
Andrew Beaujon / Washingtonian: A Reminder: Savannah Guthrie Is an Attorney
Charlie Sykes / Morning Shots: Mr. Rogers vs. Your Crazy Uncle
Susan Crabtree / Real Clear Politics: At Townhall, Biden Channels Mr. Rogers
Tom Jones / Poynter: Who had the best night of the Trump-Biden dueling town halls? Here's the unexpected answer.
Claire Shaffer / Rolling Stone: Jimmy Kimmel Slams Trump's Dueling Town Hall on Debate Night
Joel Mathis / The Week: Is America ready for a boring president?
Liz Kocan / Decider: Jimmy Kimmel Explains Why Trump And Biden's Town Halls Were Head-To-Head: “NBC Sucks”
Rob Quinn / Newser: Guthrie Gave Trump ‘One of His Toughest Grillings’
Walter Shapiro / New Republic: Diary of a Channel Surfer
Hollywood Reporter:
Over 100 actors, writers, and producers sign a letter to NBCUniversal and Comcast execs protesting the airing of a Trump town hall opposite a Biden event — “You are enabling the president's bad behavior while undercutting the Presidential Debate Commission and doing a disservice to the American public …
Discussion:
@conanobrien, @brianstelter, Axios, @jbflint, @merrillbro, @shakeenz, @feliciasonmez, Wall Street Journal, @greenfield64, @yashar, @benyt, @suehalpernvt, ABC News, New Republic, @marcacaputo, @deanluk, @adamnagourney, NBC News, Politico, Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, Boston.com, The Banter, @sulliview, @connieschultz, @marcacaputo, @hodgman, @moorehn, @bradleywhitford, @ericidle, @billyeichner, @warrenleighttv, @jbenton, @jenszalai, @kylepope, @abbydphillip, @jackischechner, @ericbalfour, @lollardfish, @markos, @wajahatali, @ynb, @keitholbermann, @brianstelter, @jon_allsop, @brianstelter, @bgrueskin, @bgrueskin, @owillis, @corb_the_lesser, @joshsternberg, @nprinskeep, @dandrezner, @danrather, @bevysmith, @shawnhatosy, @ditzkoff, @schmittnyc, @frances_fisher, @byronyork, @w7voa, @blackamazon, @drdave1999, @vivian, @joshsternberg, @elaheizadi and The Hill
Discussion:
Conan O'Brien / @conanobrien: I can't remember the last time I was this shocked by an NBC programming decision.
Brian Stelter / @brianstelter: This is how Trump is previewing his town hall: “You know, I'm being set up tonight. I'm doing this town hall with Concast - C O N, right - CON - cuz it's a CON JOB. Concast. C O N. Not C O M. CONcast. So I'm doing it, and it's NBC, the worst...” https://twitter.com/...
Sara Fischer / Axios: Town hall ratings: More people watched Biden on ABC than Trump on NBC, CNBC and MSNBC
Joe Flint / @jbflint: NBC News head Cesar Conde says, “We share in the frustration that our event will initially air alongside the first half of ABC's broadcast with Vice President Biden. Our decision is motivated only by fairness, not business considerations.” https://www.wsj.com/... via @WSJ
Merrill Brown / @merrillbro: Management at @NBCNews needs to explain ASAP how agreeing at last minute to add a town hall with President Trump opposite an @abcnews Joe Biden Town Hall is in the public interest. Even doing it at 10 ET just after Biden would have been a better decision. https://twitter.com/...
Shakina / @shakeenz: Shame on @NBC. Y'all sign my checks as of late but I'm disgusted by my home network giving Trump a platform for fear mongering, bigotry & disinformation. Don't praise yourselves for putting a trans woman on primetime then give a platform to someone who wants to abolish my rights.
Felicia Sonmez / @feliciasonmez: Trump tells the crowd he's doing his NBC town hall tonight. He says NBC is “the worst” and repeatedly insults them and host Savannah Guthrie. “I figured, what the hell, we get a free hour on television,” Trump says.
Joe Flint / Wall Street Journal: NBC Actors, Producers Protest Decision to Host Trump Town Hall at Same Time as Biden Event
Jeff Greenfield / @greenfield64: The decision by NBC News to run a Trump town hall directly opposite ABC's Biden town hall is indefensible.
@yashar: I've heard from over a dozen NBC, MSNBC, and CNBC sources (talent and staff) and the frustration with and anger toward their employer for scheduling a town hall against Biden is palpable.
Sue Halpern / @suehalpernvt: The cynicism of NBC execs, who gave us The Apprentice and thus this President, is stunning and shameful. ABC should call their bluff and move Biden so he talks after Trump. https://www.nytimes.com/...
Alex Shephard / New Republic: NBC Did Joe Biden a Big Favor
Marc Caputo / @marcacaputo: Maddow enjoyed Savannah Guthrie's questioning of Trump but suggested she had some reservations about how the town hall came to be, potentially reflecting some of the internal NBCUniversal discontent over it background: https://www.politico.com/... video of Maddow starting her show👇 https://twitter.com/...
Mark Lukasiewicz / @deanluk: This is a bad result for American voters, who should not be forced to choose which to watch. So much is still going wrong with how TV journalism copes, or still fails to cope, with @realDonaldTrump. https://twitter.com/...
Adam Nagourney / @adamnagourney: Fair point; not sure why Trump/NBC couldn't have gone before or after, or on another day. This should be about voters, give them a chance to see candidates. Instead, feels like this is going to deteriorate into chest-thumping over who gets biggest ratings. https://twitter.com/...
Ahiza García-Hodges / NBC News: Biden beats Trump in town hall ratings showdown
Nick Niedzwiadek / Politico: Trump miffed by Guthrie's questioning at town hall
Alyssa Rosenberg / Washington Post: At Trump's NBC town hall, reality strikes back at a reality-show president
Nik DeCosta-Klipa / Boston.com: Chuck Todd says he wasn't involved with NBC's controversial Donald Trump town hall
Margaret Sullivan / @sulliview: In a Sept 23 note to @NBCNews staff, the top honcho urged news group to pause to think about ‘mission’ and being ‘best in class’. Weeks later, he signed off on this ratings-driven spectacle. My column https://www.washingtonpost.com/ ...
Connie Schultz / @connieschultz: “As @vivian Vivian Schiller, a former NBC, Twitter and NPR executive, put it: ‘The point of a news organization is to serve the public. This is the opposite.’” https://twitter.com/...
Marc Caputo / @marcacaputo: What Ive gathered: ✅NBC News Noah Oppenheim made the decision for the Trump town hall ✅He clashed w/MSNBC's Phil Griffin over it ✅The 2 also disagree over their networks' directions ✅Chuck Todd had 0 to do w/town hall (colleague says he's appalled) https://www.politico.com/...
John Hodgman / @hodgman: Someone in my feed asked if anyone getting paid by NBC was standing up to this. @shakeenz was incredibly brave to leap out among the first. CONNECTING show creators @martingero and Brendan Gall backed up their cast and put their reps and brand new show on the line too. https://twitter.com/...
Heidi N. Moore / @moorehn: my entire timeline is trump. literally no biden at all. members of the media included. y'all are really going to give him those metrics, huh? that's how we got here.
Bradley Whitford / @bradleywhitford: Bullshit. “Fairness” would mean doing it the following night, not opposite each other. It also would have given you better ratings. The stupidity of your decision would be hilarious if it didn't exacerbate the divisions in our already traumatized country. Shame on you. https://twitter.com/...
Eric Idle / @ericidle: This is bollocks. You're losing a lot of friends. Think again. https://twitter.com/...
Billy Eichner / @billyeichner: I love @ConanOBrien. https://twitter.com/...
Warren Leight / @warrenleighttv: How can you “share in the frustration” when you are the ones who scheduled it? https://twitter.com/...
Joshua Benton / @jbenton: Your penance is the release of all Apprentice tapes by Monday morning, NBC https://www.wsj.com/...
Jennifer Szalai / @jenszalai: According to this, the person at NBC who wanted to move ahead “unilaterally” with the Trump town hall was Noah Oppenheim, who featured prominently (and not in a flattering light) in @RonanFarrow's “Catch and Kill” https://www.politico.com/...
Kyle Pope / @kylepope: I'm reminded of Chris Wallace bemoaning the fact that Trump's shouting meant the American people didn't get the benefit of hearing from both candidates. @NBCNews apparently has no such view. This is a craven ratings stunt, caving to the Trumpian impulses the network helped hone.
Abby D. Phillip / @abbydphillip: Yeah... so this is going well. https://twitter.com/...
@jackischechner: How humiliating for you, @NBCNews. You offer him an hour of free exposure, and he sh*ts all over you and your anchors. https://twitter.com/...
Eric Balfour / @ericbalfour: This is such a lame move on the part of @NBCNews. They should have held it on another night! https://twitter.com/...
David M. Perry / @lollardfish: Protest is good. But also: strike. https://twitter.com/...
Markos Moulitsas / @markos: Great job @nbc @NBCNews! You managed to piss everyone off, and for what? https://twitter.com/...
@wajahatali: Congrats NBC. You brought this on yourselves. Was it worth it? Just for ratings. Pathetic. https://twitter.com/...
Yvette Nicole Brown / @ynb: Alexa, play a reading of the poem “The Snake”. https://twitter.com/...
Keith Olbermann / @keitholbermann: Pro tip: cancel it https://twitter.com/...
Brian Stelter / @brianstelter: “MSNBC head Phil Griffin strongly disagreed with NBC News President Noah Oppenheim's decision to unilaterally move forward with the town hall during that time slot,” @MarcACaputo reports, citing “three high-ranking sources” https://www.politico.com/...
Jon Allsop / @jon_allsop: @BGrueskin @benyt They probably won't, though Trump might make it a nightmare for himself...
Brian Stelter / @brianstelter: @BGrueskin @benyt Holt asked lots of his own Q's last week, so Guthrie will too
Bill Grueskin / @bgrueskin: @brianstelter @benyt Right. But the host still has to feed off the voters' questions
Bill Grueskin / @bgrueskin: @benyt It's a town hall, so NBC's options are more limited than a straight interview or debate.
Oliver Willis / @owillis: @benyt youve been at this too long for this naive a take
@corb_the_lesser: @benyt If Trump is tossed a few relevant questions, he'll do his own nightmare making.
Josh Sternberg / @joshsternberg: @BGrueskin @brianstelter @benyt I will be interested to see if NBC puts its ad sales execs in the front row like previous presidential town halls, like 2016's Commander-in-Chief forum on the Intrepid.
Steve Inskeep / @nprinskeep: Okay that's a good line. https://twitter.com/...
Daniel W. Drezner / @dandrezner: Tweet of the day. https://twitter.com/...
Dan Rather / @danrather: This shade is as warranted as an umbrella on a hot summer day at the beach. And @ConanOBrien, I'm here for it. https://twitter.com/...
Shawn Hatosy / @shawnhatosy: Dude, I remember. That decision caused the first cancellation of Southland. https://twitter.com/...
Dave Itzkoff / @ditzkoff: the important thing is that, by offering Trump a competing town hall, NBC was able to maintain its dignity and avoid the wrath of the president https://twitter.com/...
Rob Schmitt / @schmittnyc: To shocked NBC staff, your company, like every other corporation, is just pretending to be woke and liberal. Trump town hall will make millions and they need money to pay you. Welcome to capitalism. https://twitter.com/...
Frances Fisher / @frances_fisher: @jjabrams @Ava @marhargitay Among 100 Top Hollywood Players: “We are simply asking that #NBC air the President's town hall either before or after Vice President #Biden's so that American voters can have the opportunity to watch both.” https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/ ...
Byron York / @byronyork: NBC actors, producers protest network's decision to air Trump town hall tonight at same time as Biden's on ABC. They want you to know that, ‘This is not a partisan issue. This is about the political health of our democracy.’ OK. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/ ... https://twitter.com/...
Steve Herman / @w7voa: “So I'm being set up tonight” with “Concast” and “NBC, the worst,” says @POTUS of this evening's televised town hall event. “We get a free hour on television.”
@blackamazon: ...... god the social and comms consultant space is bad and bland and boring right now https://twitter.com/...
Dr. David A. Lustig / @drdave1999: I call it ‘Corporate Cowardice.’ Other users on social media were less kind. NBC deserves to be blasted for giving the Sociopath-in-Chief 90-min. of free airtime after he withdrew from his debate with Biden, as well as for scheduling it opposite Biden. https://www.latimes.com/...
Vivian Schiller / @vivian: @benyt They made their own bed.
Josh Sternberg / @joshsternberg: Would appreciate a look into how much money the networks are making from town halls. We blew past the “informing the public” argument. Media buyers, my DMs are open to hear how much your clients are spending to be a part of this.
New York Times:
Twitter says it is now letting the NY Post link be shared because the info had spread so widely that it can no longer be considered private — The latest change underlined how rapidly social media platforms are shifting their positions in the days leading up to the election.
Discussion:
@mikeisaac, Politico, TechCrunch, @randypicker, @randypicker, @randypicker, @randypicker, @randypicker, @randypicker, Gizmodo, The Hill, CNET, @sethabramson, @timmarchman, @dellcam, @ggreenwald, @byronyork, @jamespmcleod, @baekdal, @genepark, Fast Company and Platformer, more at Techmeme »
Discussion:
Rat King / @mikeisaac: i was kidding yesterday when i said tune in tomorrow but..... NEW: twitter has changed its policy *again* and will now allow people to share the NYPost story links because the article and information has been widely disseminated and is no longer private https://www.nytimes.com/...
Anthony Ha / TechCrunch: Twitter is now allowing users to share that controversial New York Post story
Randy Picker / @randypicker: Subpoenaing Twitter seems like an effort to put pressure on Twitter regarding those editorial decisions and people who take the 1st Amendment seriously, as I hope that WSJ would, should defend Twitter and not attack it. (3/)
Randy Picker / @randypicker: The WSJ describes Twitter's actions as being inconsistent with the spirit of the First Amendment. I don't understand that. (4/)
Randy Picker / @randypicker: Editorial decisions that Twitter makes in deciding what content to allow and to block are core private speech, something that I would hope that the WSJ would understand the need to protect. (6/6)
Randy Picker / @randypicker: The WSJ seems thrilled that Twitter is being hauled in front of the Senate to explain its editorial decisions in running the site rather than seeing those decisions as fully-protected by the 1st Amendment and in need of broad defense. (2/)
Randy Picker / @randypicker: The WSJ editorial board clearly believes that there are two versions of the First Amendment, one for the actual media—them—and a second substandard version for new media upstarts like Twitter. (1/) https://twitter.com/...
Randy Picker / @randypicker: The most basic line of demarcation in the 1st Amendment is that it limits efforts by the gov't to squelch speech and that it protects private speech. (5/)
Chris Mills Rodrigo / The Hill: Twitter reverses, allowing users to share controversial New York Post story
Queenie Wong / CNET: Twitter is no longer blocking links to a New York Post article about Biden's son
Seth Abramson / @sethabramson: 1⃣ Twitter blocks Giuliani-pushed Kremlin disinformation. 2⃣ GOP is enraged. 3⃣ Twitter suffers a systemwide attack. 4⃣ Twitter says there's been no hack. 5⃣ But Twitter can't locate the attack's origin. 6⃣ Twitter reverses course—allowing publication of Kremlin disinformation. https://twitter.com/...
Tim Marchman / @timmarchman: Twitter takes bold stance against poorly reported story citing shady crooks as key sources, unless that makes anyone mad, in which case they're fine with it! https://twitter.com/...
Dell Cameron / @dellcam: Twitter violating its own rules because <reasons> is exactly how I thought the day would end https://twitter.com/...
Glenn Greenwald / @ggreenwald: There are lots of valid criticisms of Twitter — I obviously believe what they did this week was dangerously wrong — but they continue to be one of the best large companies, certainly tech companies, for engaging their critics and being responsive and candid in admitting error: https://twitter.com/...
Byron York / @byronyork: Just hours ago the New York Post Hunter Biden story was unsafe. Now, apparently, it's not. From NYT: ‘In Reversal, Twitter Is No Longer Blocking New York Post Article.’ https://www.nytimes.com/... https://twitter.com/...
James Mcleod / @jamespmcleod: Working the refs ... works. https://twitter.com/...
Thomas Baekdal / @baekdal: This is exactly the same nonsense that has caused Twitter to allow Trump to keep posting things that clearly violate their community rules. Look Twitter, if you have a rule... stick with it. https://twitter.com/...
@genepark: the extent to which we have huge national debates about chat moderator rules is going to turn me into the joker https://twitter.com/...
Joe Berkowitz / Fast Company: The last 36 hours of news prove that “fairness” further poisons politics
RELATED:
Mike Masnick / Techdirt:
The FCC has no jurisdiction over Section 230, which was explicitly written to deny the FCC any authority over websites
The FCC has no jurisdiction over Section 230, which was explicitly written to deny the FCC any authority over websites
Discussion:
Bloomberg, @aricohn, @chimeracoder, @mathewi, Radio & Television …, @evan_greer, Reason, @mmasnick, @adamtaylorbates, @justinamash, @esaagar, @sarahjeong and @nxthompson, more at Techmeme »
Discussion:
Ari Cohn / @aricohn: The irony here is so delicious. If #Section230 goes away, Twitter could be liable on the grounds that it gave @AjitPaiFCC the ability to block me. @AjitPai https://twitter.com/...
Aditya Mukerjee / @chimeracoder: Right wing are currently coordinating attacks on Section 230, which protects free speech on the Internet. Could anyone have predicted this 2-3 years ago? Answer: Yes. Sex workers have been sounding the alarm about #SESTA and #FOSTA since 2017.
Mathew Ingram / @mathewi: “Pai is wrong in almost everything. The FCC has no jurisdiction over Section 230, which was explicitly written to deny the FCC any authority over websites. The FCC has no power to reinterpret the law” https://www.techdirt.com/... via @Techdirt
Adam Jacobson / Radio & Television Business Report: Senate Seeks Simington FCC Nod Amid Section 230 Furor
Evan Greer / @evan_greer: Finally a balanced headline about Section 230 https://www.techdirt.com/...
Elizabeth Nolan Brown / Reason: The Portland Protest Shooter's Death Looks More and More Like Excessive Force—but Trump Keeps Bragging About It
Mike Masnick / @mmasnick: And, here's another person in Congress introducing a bill to undermine free speech online and ignore the 1st Amendment. Just imagine if someone in Congress argued that Fox News had to “play fair.” Rep. like Budd would lose their shit. https://twitter.com/...
Adam Bates / @adamtaylorbates: I have never in my life seen so many ostensibly smart people be so unable to read a basic statute. https://twitter.com/...
Justin Amash / @justinamash: Ironically, @AjitPaiFCC is adding to the confusion by misstating the law. Section 230 does NOT convey “a special immunity denied to other media outlets, such as newspapers and broadcasters.” It applies all the same to social media companies, newspapers, broadcasters, you, and me. https://twitter.com/...
Saagar Enjeti / @esaagar: Cannot overstate the importance of this announcement FCC Chairman @AjitPaiFCC says he has the legal authority to interpret section 230 and intends to do so with an eye towards transparency from social media companies on now clearly revealed biased content moderation standards https://twitter.com/...
Sarah Jeong / @sarahjeong: pretty much the tl;dr on this one!!! https://www.techdirt.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Todd Shields / Bloomberg:
Ajit Pai says FCC will start a rulemaking to clarify the meaning of Section 230, and social media doesn't have “special immunity denied to other media outlets”
Ajit Pai says FCC will start a rulemaking to clarify the meaning of Section 230, and social media doesn't have “special immunity denied to other media outlets”
Discussion:
Ajit Pai / @ajitpaifcc: I intend to move forward with an @FCC rulemaking to clarify the meaning of #Section230. Read my full statement below. https://twitter.com/...
Jessica Rosenworcel / @jrosenworcel: The FCC has no business being the President's speech police. #Section230 https://twitter.com/...
Mr Maitra / @mrmaitra: As I said, if Big Tech turns neo-feudal, consider half the population and a whole worldview their enemy, and picks a fight with the state...it won't be long before half the population considers them enemy, and the state cracks down. https://twitter.com/...
Tom Johnson / @tommjohnsonjr: I've informed Chairman @AjitPaiFCC that the @FCC has the legal authority to interpret #Section230. We now intend to move forward with a rulemaking to clarify its meaning. Read the Chairman's full statement below: https://twitter.com/...
Sara Morrison / Vox: What the FCC can and can't do to Section 230 — President Donald Trump shakes the hand …
Rick Scott / @senrickscott: Glad to see @AjitPaiFCC and the @FCC addressing this issue. On October 28th at the @SenateCommerce hearing we will get more information directly from tech CEOs under oath. https://twitter.com/...
Karol Cummins / @karolcummins: A U.S. FCC decision to review a liability shield for Twitter Inc. and Facebook Inc. fulfills the wishes of President Donald Trump and his conservative allies, yet has prompted questions about the agency's authority and political motivations. https://www.bloomberg.com/...
Aditya Chunduru / MediaNama: US communications regulator to revisit Section 230 safe harbour protections for social media companies
@jisraelbalderas: “The congressional record reflects that the drafters of Section 230 did ‘not wish to have a Federal Computer Commission with an ARMY OF BUREAUCRATS regulating the internet.’” See Restoring Internet Freedom Order 33 FCC Rcd 311 (1) (emphasis added) https://twitter.com/...
@jisraelbalderas: Looking forward to see how the FCC avoids an arbitrary and capricious ruling when it “clarifies” 230 while simultaneously “clarifying” that in its RIFO final rule, it found 230 to be determinative that regulating broadband as info service means free market deregulation approach https://twitter.com/...
Brendan Carr / @brendancarrfcc: FCC Chairman Pai announced today that he is moving forward with clarifying Section 230. This is great news, and I applaud his leadership on this important issue. My full statement on the need to reform Section 230 and rein in Big Tech immediately: https://twitter.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Jay Caruso / @jaycaruso: “But they do not have a First Amendment right to a special immunity denied to other media outlets, such as newspapers and broadcasters.” You're right and they do *not* have special immunity, Chairman Pai. https://twitter.com/...
Josh Hawley / @hawleymo: This is a major announcement from FCC on #BigTech. Now Congress must act on #Section230 https://twitter.com/...
Wall Street Journal:
Sources: as Facebook curbed political news in 2017, Zuckerberg OK'ed tweaks affecting sites like Mother Jones after some execs worried about impact on the right — Facebook's chief, once uninterested, has transformed himself into an active political operator in the Trump era
Discussion:
@clarajeffery, Mother Jones, @erikwemple, @juddlegum, The Wrap, @monikabauerlein, @bendreyfuss, @nickmartin, @nabihasyed, @bgrueskin, The Week, @lindsayschrupp, @davidcorndc, @monikabauerlein, @juddlegum, @juddlegum, @leavittalone, @monikabauerlein, @anthony, @alxthomp, @jason_kint, @monikabauerlein, @lindsayschrupp, @lindsayschrupp, @monikabauerlein, @monikabauerlein, @mccarthyryanj, @andreabellemare, @lindsayschrupp, @mathewi, @monikabauerlein, @taraemcg, @taraemcg, @slpng_giants, @monikabauerlein, @steven_strauss and Protocol, more at Techmeme »
Discussion:
@clarajeffery: 1/ I am enraged. Excellent reporting from WSJ's @dseetharaman and @EmilyGlazer finds that Facebook engineers—with sign-off from Zuckerberg himself—retooled their algorithm to throttle traffic to high-value progressive news orgs, @MotherJones IN PARTICULAR https://www.wsj.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Ben Dreyfuss / Mother Jones: Mother Jones' growth director recalls a sharp drop in Facebook reach in 2017 and '18, after WSJ reveals that algorithmic changes were made with politics in mind
Erik Wemple / @erikwemple: WSJ today reported that Facebook algorithm changes consciously shafted Mother Jones and liberal pubs. This is a big deal. Great piece here from @bendreyfuss https://www.motherjones.com/ ... (Disclosure: My wife @smencimer works at MoJo)
Judd Legum / @juddlegum: Reminder that when I exposed the Daily Wire was blatantly violating Facebook's rules to game the algorithm, Facebook punished the Facebook pages the Daily Wire was conspiring with, but not the Daily Wire. https://popular.info/... https://twitter.com/...
Sean Burch / The Wrap: Mother Jones Editor-in-Chief Says Facebook's Algorithm Change Decimated Site's Traffic and Favors ‘Right-Wing’ Disinformation
Monika Bauerlein / @monikabauerlein: I'm in a @MotherJones board meeting today so it's going to take a while to fully process this infuriating news, but just briefly (because YOU, as a news consumer, should be furious): https://www.wsj.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Ben Dreyfuss / @bendreyfuss: If we were not all working from home and I had written this post in our office, everyone in the bureau would have heard me Typing Very Loudly https://www.motherjones.com/ ...
Nick Martin / @nickmartin: As I was saying, this is not an accident or a result of the right being more engaged on Facebook. The company has built into its algorithms a bias in favor of conservative and far-right websites. It's rigged against the left. https://twitter.com/...
Nabiha Syed / @nabihasyed: This is BONKERS. And underscores how important it is for news orgs to find platform-proof distribution strategies . . . (she says, while tweeting) https://twitter.com/...
Bill Grueskin / @bgrueskin: In case you woke up today wondering whether Facebook is still a threat to journalism and democracy, well, you should read this thread from the EIC of @MotherJones https://twitter.com/...
Kathryn Krawczyk / The Week: Mark Zuckerberg reportedly keeps an ‘open line’ with Jared Kushner
Lindsay Schrupp / @lindsayschrupp: It is beyond insulting to put their work in the same category as the far-right partisan blogs that spew bigotry masked as “news” and spread misinfo to harm our democracy — let alone to kick our reporters' work out of the News Tab altogether because we self-label as progressive
David Corn / @davidcorndc: Please read this whole thread. @Facebook purposefully screwed over @MotherJones and other progressive media. You can fight back. See the appeal at the end of the thread. https://twitter.com/...
Monika Bauerlein / @monikabauerlein: Just for the record, no one at Mother Jones has ever been invited to dine at Mark Zuckerberg's home. Nor should someone who wants to dine with propagandists ever call on us. https://twitter.com/...
Judd Legum / @juddlegum: Mark Zuckerberg “talks regularly with White House senior adviser Jared Kushner” and “has lectured Facebook's broadly left-leaning staff about the need to understand that their user base is more conservative” https://www.wsj.com/...
Judd Legum / @juddlegum: Zuckerberg discusses “Facebook policies over WhatsApp” with Jared Kushner and “has forged ties with right-leaning publishers that drive engagement on the platform, including Ben Shapiro, co-founder of the Daily Wire.”
John Leavitt / @leavittalone: “Listen nerds this only makes money cause I can sell the data of the top 100 million enraged uncles most likely to fall for a phishing scam so shut your lib mouths and get back to pushing Daily Stormer links.” https://twitter.com/...
Monika Bauerlein / @monikabauerlein: They made changes so that actual journalism that reporters and factcheckers and editors and data crunchers and art directors worked their assess off on got downgraded, just to balance things out. So stuff like this versus stuff like this: https://twitter.com/...
Anthony DeRosa / @anthony: “Mr. Zuckerberg is now an active political operator. He has dined with President Trump, talks regularly with White House senior adviser Jared Kushner, and has pressed lawmakers and officials to scrutinize rivals including TikTok and Apple Inc.” https://www.wsj.com/...
Alex Thompson / @alxthomp: Lots of great news in this WSJ Zuckerberg piece but calling Acronym just a “left-leaning non-profit” is misleading. The group has very partisan ambitions and Courier has been running targeted FB ads for frontline congressional members. https://www.wsj.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Jason Kint / @jason_kint: So Jared Kushner appears to have a lot of Mark Zuckerberg's ear according to this WSJ report. Neither know or care much about the public at-large based on their records. https://www.wsj.com/...
Monika Bauerlein / @monikabauerlein: Last thing before I go back into meetings, one reason this is so enraging is that I've so long insisted on giving Facebook some benefit of the doubt. I was convinced we were a random casualty of their broader trajectory, a fly on their windshield. But it's always, always worse.
Lindsay Schrupp / @lindsayschrupp: At @CourierNewsroom we have 60+ journalists across the country to cover issues that impact their communities and to build a more informed and engaged electorate. Every day, they report on local issues like voter suppression, access to rural health care, and environmental justice.
Lindsay Schrupp / @lindsayschrupp: There may be actual people at Facebook who believe in and understand the importance of journalism, but it is clear that Mark Zuckerberg has no idea what journalism is.
Monika Bauerlein / @monikabauerlein: .@MotherJones had a big presence on Facebook because our team worked really hard to bring quality news to users on social platforms, and people were hungry for that. But suddenly our reach dropped like a stone. https://www.motherjones.com/ ... https://twitter.com/...
Monika Bauerlein / @monikabauerlein: But you can bet that we'll keep covering Facebook as the massively powerful company that it is, even if it tries to pull the rug out from under us. https://www.motherjones.com/ ...
Ryan McCarthy / @mccarthyryanj: Mark Zuckerberg and Jared Kushner reportedly communicate over encrypted messaging. (A reminder that Kushner is a government employee, even though he has forgone his WH salary) https://www.wsj.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Andrea Bellemare / @andreabellemare: Clara Jeffery estimates that FB's algorithm changes cost Mother Jones between $400,000 to $600,000 a year. https://twitter.com/...
Lindsay Schrupp / @lindsayschrupp: Earlier this year, Zuckerberg created a policy to block progressive news orgs like @Couriernewsroom from the News Tab, while giving free access to far-right aggregators and purveyors of disinfo like Daily Caller, Daily Wire, Breitbart, Federalist, Washington Examiner, & TheBlaze https://twitter.com/...
Mathew Ingram / @mathewi: “After the launch last year of Courier Newsroom, a network of eight progressive local-news sites that is part-owned by a left-leaning nonprofit with close ties to Democratic donors, Mr. Zuckerberg argued that Courier wasn't a real news outlet” https://www.wsj.com/...
Monika Bauerlein / @monikabauerlein: At the time that this happened, Facebook claimed it was reducing the prevalence of “low-quality” news in users' feeds. Seems a reasonable goal. But guess what? When they did that, it turned out to hurt low-quality news from right-wing propaganda outlets. So what did they do?
Tara McGowan / @taraemcg: To be very clear, this “policy” does not impact right-wing media outlets including The Daily Caller, The Daily Wire, Breitbart, Washington Free Beacon + dozens of others known for spreading disinformation. According to Facebook, these are all still “verified” news publishers 🤬
Tara McGowan / @taraemcg: 🚨 WSJ confirms what we've suspected: Mark Zuckerberg directly intervened to prevent progressive news orgs like @CourierNewsroom from being included in Facebook's News Tab, while sharing meals with Ben Shapiro + exchanging texts with Jared Kushner 🚨 https://www.wsj.com/...
@slpng_giants: Social media platforms should not take the politics if their user base into account AT ALL. @facebook is supposed to be a “neutral platform”. It shouldn't be taking requests nor asking for counsel from either party. https://twitter.com/...
Monika Bauerlein / @monikabauerlein: And this had real effects. A roughly $400,000 decrease in annual revenue, for starters. There are positions we couldn't fill, projects we couldn't do because of this. But the bigger effect is on YOU, readers. YOU were kept from seeing news you wanted (even if you followed MoJo.)
Steven Strauss / @steven_strauss: Strange how that happened https://twitter.com/...
Vijaya Gadde / @vijaya:
[Thread] Twitter updates Hacked Materials Policy, says it won't remove content unless shared by hackers themselves and will label tweets instead of block links — Over the last 24 hours, we've received significant feedback (from critical to supportive) about how we enforced our Hacked Materials Policy yesterday. After reflecting on this feedback, we have decided to make changes to the policy and how we enforce it.
Discussion:
@vijaya, New York Times, @jack, @vijaya, @b_fung, Wired, Washington Post, @vijaya, CNBC, @bborrman, @mikeisaac, Breitbart, Axios, WAVY-TV, MIT Technology Review, @bborrman, CNBC, Techdirt, @mikeisaac, Variety, @justinhendrix, @reciaimthenet, @hawleymo, The Wrap, @rasmus_kleis, Mashable, @fmanjoo, @mpdillon, Fortune, Just Security, @vijaya, @jess, @poynter, @profcarroll, The Week, The Verge, @alexstamos, @alexstamos, @0xmatt, @scottnover, @scottnover, @bborrman, @stevenoverly, @lizkelley, @nedsegal, @sdkstl, @asharangappa_, @vijaya, @vijaya, @vijaya, @vijaya, @ericrweinstein, TechCrunch and CNET, more at Techmeme »
Discussion:
Vijaya Gadde / @vijaya: We believe that labeling Tweets and empowering people to assess content for themselves better serves the public interest and public conversation. The Hacked Material Policy is being updated to reflect these new enforcement capabilities.
@jack: Straight blocking of URLs was wrong, and we updated our policy and enforcement to fix. Our goal is to attempt to add context, and now we have capabilities to do that. https://twitter.com/...
Vijaya Gadde / @vijaya: So, what's changing? 1. We will no longer remove hacked content unless it is directly shared by hackers or those acting in concert with them 2. We will label Tweets to provide context instead of blocking links from being shared on Twitter
Andy Greenberg / Wired: Twitter's ‘Hacked Materials’ Rule Tries to Thread an Impossible Needle
Elizabeth Dwoskin / Washington Post: Twitter changes policy that blocked a New York Post story about Biden's son
Vijaya Gadde / @vijaya: I'm grateful for everyone who has provided feedback and insights over the past day. Content moderation is incredibly difficult, especially in the critical context of an election. We are trying to act responsibly & quickly to prevent harms, but we're still learning along the way.
Arjun Kharpal / CNBC: Twitter changes hacked material policy after backlash over blocking NYPost story about Biden's son
Brandon / @bborrman: Yesterday was the highest profile application of the Hacked Materials Policy to date. We want to clarify — the policy isn't meant to chill journalistic efforts or whistleblowers. More to come. https://twitter.com/...
Rat King / @mikeisaac: Twitter and Facebook spent 24 hours defending decisions to throttle or block links to the NYPost story. Amazingly, tonight Twitter changed its stance because of the chilling effect its “hacked materials” policy could have on whistleblowers w @kateconger https://www.nytimes.com/...
Sean Moran / Breitbart: RNC Files FEC Complaint Against Twitter for ‘Illegal’ Contribution to Joe Biden
Abby Ohlheiser / MIT Technology Review: Twitter's ban almost doubled attention for Biden misinformation
Brandon / @bborrman: @ScottNover @TwitterComms @nypost No change as the materials in the article still violate our rules on sharing personal private information.
Jessica Bursztynsky / CNBC: Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey says blocking New York Post story was ‘wrong’
Mike Masnick / Techdirt: Twitter Fixes Its Bad Policy On Blocking ‘Hacked’ Documents
Rat King / @mikeisaac: But! Twitter will still continue to block links to the NYPost story under a *separate* policy, because the story contains links to email addresses and personal information, which are not allowed on the site. tune in tomorrow for our next installment https://www.nytimes.com/...
Todd Spangler / Variety: Twitter CEO Admits Blocking NY Post Stories Was Wrong, Changes Hacked-Content Policy
Justin Hendrix / @justinhendrix: One of the reasons people are freaking out about the removal/limiting of the NY Post story is they are simply not habituated to the platforms caring. @ChristopherJM: Facebook Gave A Platform To The Shady Ukrainians Pushing The New York Post Biden Story https://www.buzzfeednews.com/ ...
@reciaimthenet: They change their “hacked materials” policy but still don't define what “hacked materials” are and how it related to the @nypost story... https://twitter.com/...
Josh Hawley / @hawleymo: I'm looking forward to asking you about this. Under oath. https://twitter.com/...
Sean Burch / The Wrap: Twitter Reverses ‘Wrong’ Policy on Hacked Materials After NY Post Story Was Blocked
Rasmus Kleis Nielsen / @rasmus_kleis: 100% this - “Without methodology or transparency, Facebook and Twitter become the ‘arbiters of the truth’” @ctardaguila says. “Naive are those who believe this isn't dangerous ... Transparency is essential [to] the cause of reducing mis and disinformation” https://www.poynter.org/...
Farhad Manjoo / @fmanjoo: we're changing the policy that led to this but it also violates another policy https://twitter.com/...
Patrick Dillon / @mpdillon: These sites have have known for 4 years this kind of stuff was coming, we're less than 3 weeks out, and the answer is still “we're winging it, we'll make it up as we go along” https://www.nytimes.com/...
Justin Hendrix / Just Security: Facebook and Twitter's Handling of New York Post Hunter Biden Story Bodes Poorly for Post-Election Period
Vijaya Gadde / @vijaya: Why the changes? We want to address the concerns that there could be many unintended consequences to journalists, whistleblowers and others in ways that are contrary to Twitter's purpose of serving the public conversation.
Jessica Verrilli / @jess: This is such a hard job but I have total faith @vijaya and the Twitter team are acting in a principled manner, listening to the feedback, and transparently evolving. https://twitter.com/...
@poynter: It seems like Facebook and Twitter have decided to assume the position they've been avoiding for so long. https://www.poynter.org/...
David Carroll / @profcarroll: Everyone is making it up as they go along. The only question is do you want folks who are democratically elected/appointed doing it or do you want folks accountable only to shareholders doing it (and only barely because of special stock classes and packing the board and stuff)? https://twitter.com/...
Brendan Morrow / The Week: Twitter announces ‘stunning policy reversal’ after New York Post article block
Alex Stamos / @alexstamos: These companies have serious problems with non-consensual imagery for both celebrities and normies, and strong enforcement of those rules (and anything that could lead to physical or electronic brigading) should still be free of political considerations. https://twitter.com/...
Alex Stamos / @alexstamos: This seems like a reasonable change. It's appropriate for social media platforms to prevent themselves from being used as the initial distribution point for a hack-forge-leak, but not once the stories hit the press. Twitter and Facebook can't fix bad journalism. https://twitter.com/...
One Matt among many / @0xmatt: @alexstamos It does seem to me though, like the practical effect of this change is that hacktivists will have their content taken down, but anyone who can afford to launder their hacked data through the New York Post will get a pass.
Scott Nover / @scottnover: @bborrman @TwitterComms Hey Brandon — How does this effect the @nypost article?
Scott Nover / @scottnover: @bborrman @TwitterComms @nypost Okay, thanks. But the change indicates that, under the new policy, the @nypost article itself doesn't violate the hacked materials policy anymore? Is that correct?
Brandon / @bborrman: @ScottNover @TwitterComms @nypost New policy is not in place yet, but we'll share it when it is in the coming days. So as of now nothing changes.
Steven Overly / @stevenoverly: Twitter makes changes to its policies for handling hacked materials following the New York Post controversy. https://twitter.com/...
Liz Kelley / @lizkelley: moving forward, we'll label hacked materials rather than blocking links. here's the latest: https://twitter.com/...
Staci D Kramer / @sdkstl: “We are trying to act responsibly & quickly to prevent harms, but we're still learning along the way.” - Twitter moves quickly to adjust how it enforces the controversial policy that blocked NYP article from being posted or shared. https://twitter.com/...
Asha Rangappa / @asharangappa_: Subject of NY Post story is now being investigated by the FBI a foreign intel operation and Twitter decides to facilitate our adversaries by allowing it to spread like wildfire. Remember, lies spread 6x faster than truth on social media...Russia counts on it 🇷🇺 https://twitter.com/...
Vijaya Gadde / @vijaya: We will continue to keep you all updated on our progress and more details as we update our policy pages to reflect these changes in the coming days.
Vijaya Gadde / @vijaya: We've recently added new product capabilities, such as labels to provide people with additional context. We are no longer limited to Tweet removal as an enforcement action.
Vijaya Gadde / @vijaya: All the other Twitter Rules will still apply to the posting of or linking to hacked materials, such as our rules against posting private information, synthetic and manipulated media, and non-consensual nudity.
Vijaya Gadde / @vijaya: We put the Hacked Materials Policy in place back in 2018 to discourage and mitigate harms associated with hacks and unauthorized exposure of private information. We tried to find the right balance between people's privacy and the right of free expression, but we can do better.
Eric Weinstein / @ericrweinstein: You have: a consistency problem a hypocrisy problem a political bias problem an arrogance problem an authoritarian problem an insularity problem and a censorship problem And all are *repeatedly* misportrayed as a single “clarity in communications” problem. #SlipTheDISC https://twitter.com/...
RELATED:
@twittersafety:
[Thread] Twitter clarifies why it blocked the sharing of NY Post's Biden story, saying it contained private info and violated its Hacked Materials Policy
[Thread] Twitter clarifies why it blocked the sharing of NY Post's Biden story, saying it contained private info and violated its Hacked Materials Policy
Discussion:
@politifact, @jack, @twittersafety, TechCrunch, The Intercept, @ridt, @noupside, @jakesherman, CNBC, New York Times, New Republic, Politico, Adweek, Associated Press, @jonfavs, Gizmodo Australia, Columbia Journalism Review, @ewong, The Explorer Micros, Breitbart, Duluth News Tribune, @tedcruz, @pt, The Daily Beast, @trumpwarroom, @christopherjm, @justinamash, @jakesherman and @jakesherman, more at Techmeme »
Discussion:
Tom Kertscher / @politifact: A look behind the NY Post headline about Joe Biden and a Ukraine meeting
@jack: Our communication around our actions on the @nypost article was not great. And blocking URL sharing via tweet or DM with zero context as to why we're blocking: unacceptable. https://twitter.com/...
@twittersafety: The policy, established in 2018, prohibits the use of our service to distribute content obtained without authorization. We don't want to incentivize hacking by allowing Twitter to be used as distribution for possibly illegally obtained materials. https://blog.twitter.com/...
Glenn Greenwald / The Intercept: Facebook and Twitter Cross a Line Far More Dangerous Than What They Censor
Thomas Rid / @ridt: Relax. Twitter and Facebook are not the internet, and they're not the government. These are private companies. A little bit like a supermarket asking you to wear a mask. You can just stay out or leave if you don't like it.
Renee DiResta / @noupside: This is related to today's Biden story: A few months ago the fact-respecting portion of the internet was outraged at social media companies allowing Plandemic to go wildly viral, despite stated policies against health misinfo. The video was taken down after millions of views...
Jake Sherman / @jakesherman: I tweeted a link to the NYP story right after it dropped yesterday morning. I immediately reached out to the Biden campaign to see if they had any answer. I wish i had given the story a closer read before tweeting it. @twitter suspended me https://twitter.com/...
Salvador Rodriguez / CNBC: Twitter backtracks and allows users to share New York Post story about Bidens
Alex Shephard / New Republic: Facebook and Twitter Have Made a Mess of the New York Post's Hunter Biden Story
Jack Shafer / Politico: Facebook and Twitter Have Bitten Off Too Much
Scott Nover / Adweek: Twitter and Facebook's Editorial Decisions Clash With Questionable New York Post Reporting
Jon Favreau / @jonfavs: The New York Post lied because The New York Post is a run by right-wing liars and we should assume what they write is false until proven otherwise. https://twitter.com/...
Whitney Kimball / Gizmodo Australia: ‘Censored’ New York Post Article Has Been Shared Only... 470,000 Times on Facebook
Edward Wong / @ewong: Many newsrooms are treating the “mystery laptop” differently than the 2016 Clinton & Dem email dumps. Reporters & editors realize they got played then — those leaks were part of a Russian operation. What's the real story now? And what's the role of Murdoch-owned NY Post & Fox? https://twitter.com/...
The Explorer Micros: Sensitive Censor — This was a pretty crazy week on Twitter. The Senate Judiciary Committee held …
Duluth News Tribune: Twitter briefly restricts Trump campaign account, Republicans decry company's actions
Ted Cruz / @tedcruz: My letter to @jack regarding @Twitter's censorship of the @nypost. https://twitter.com/...
Parker / @pt: I have read the argument a lot in the last day that social media is the Public Square. No. The internet is the public square, and it is infinite. Twitter is an Arby's on the Square, and you're inside yelling about their lack of vegan options being literal fascism.
Trump War Room / @trumpwarroom: BREAKING: Twitter has locked the personal account of White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany for sharing news Democrats don't like. https://twitter.com/...
Christopher Miller / @christopherjm: New: Facebook reduced the distribution of the NY Post story with unverified claims about the Bidens. But for a year+ it's given a platform to Ukrainian operatives—including one the US sanctioned & deemed an “active Russian agent”—to spread Biden disinfo. https://www.buzzfeednews.com/ ...
Justin Amash / @justinamash: The First Amendment prohibits government censorship and protects private censorship. In a free society, Twitter and Facebook are allowed to make horrible decisions with respect to content moderation, and you are allowed to tell them off and use another service.
Jake Sherman / @jakesherman: @Twitter my goal was not to spread informatoin. my goal was to raise questions about the story — as i did in subsequent tweets — and see how the biden campaign was going to respond. They later did respond.
Natasha Lomas / TechCrunch:
EU data protection authority finds IAB Europe's GDPR consent framework, adopted by Google and others, fails to meet required legal standards of data protection — A flagship framework for gathering Internet users' consent for targeting with behavioral ads — which is designed by ad industry body …
Discussion:
Irish Council for Civil Liberties: Data Protection Authority investigation finds that the IAB Transparency and Consent Framework infringes the GDPR.
Robin Berjon / @robinberjon: 🚨🚨🚨😺 The Belgian data authority finds that the IAB TCF infringes the GDPR. This isn't surprising: the @IABEurope CEO had said the same thing. The only unexpected aspect is how long it took for enforcement to step in. This is a good outcome 🧵 https://www.iccl.ie/...
Johnny Ryan / Irish Council for Civil Liberties: GDPR watchdog's investigation finds that tracking and consent pop-ups used by Google and other major websites and apps are unlawful.
Laura Kalbag / @laurakalbag: It's not that I told you so but... no actually I told you so. https://techcrunch.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Jason Kint / @jason_kint: Here is the full report. This is a big deal and looks to have a brief appeal process. Findings to be digested. https://techcrunch.com/...
Johnny Ryan / @johnnyryan: Great piece on today's material from @riptari, who has reported on our RTB complaints from the start https://techcrunch.com/...
Robin Berjon / @robinberjon: Which brings me to the final point: finding the TCF out of line with GDPR is a good decision, but Google's bidding system is no better and its lack of purpose limitation is staggering. It would be unfair for regulators to enforce on only part of the market. 🔚
David Carroll / @profcarroll: Adtech's trade group (IAB) found to have a massive GDPR compliance problem on its hands. Its lame attempt to try and become lawful is predictably disastrous. https://techcrunch.com/... via @riptari
Garett Sloane / Ad Age: Privacy watchdog slaps IAB and puts real-time bidding in advertising on notice
Roger McNamee / @moonalice: Is it possible that the era of unchecked (and dangerous) business practices by internet platforms may be ending? If the answer is yes, historians may point to the past 10 days as a key inflection point. https://techcrunch.com/...
Johnny Ryan / @johnnyryan: This is good news for publishers, which have had their audiences stollen from them for a decade, been subject to tracking based bot fraud, and subject to vast adtech taxes. Here's the view from a smart colleague working at the NYT. https://twitter.com/...
Ashkan Soltani / @ashk4n: The Belgian DPA (@APD_GBA) has found the @iab 's “Tracking Consent Framework” (TCF) which is used by much of adtech (incl @Google) to violate GDPR requirements for transparency, fairness accountability, and lawful basis. https://techcrunch.com/... https://www.iccl.ie/...
Jason Kint / @jason_kint: Nevermind me, just read this super important thread from data governance czar at The New York Times. https://twitter.com/...
Laura Wagner / VICE:
NYT AME Carolyn Ryan told staff that columnists have wide latitude to criticize colleagues' work, in contrast to a policy against criticism on Twitter or Slack — After Bret Stephens regurgitated criticisms of his colleagues' 1619 Project, NYT brass held a meeting to clarify who at the paper can write about what.
Discussion:
Joshua Rivera / @jmrivera02: it really is something seeing how lazy yet amplified the attacks on the 1619 project have been compared to the rigorous and through responses to those bad faith attacks https://twitter.com/...
Aaron / @bobbybigwheel: The whole opinion/news divide really seems untenable. Just have the same rules for everyone, this shouldn't be that hard! https://www.vice.com/...
Phil Magness / @philwmagness: And then we get to the conclusion, which effectively says ‘Anyone who criticizes the 1619 Project for any reason, no matter how valid, is acting in bad faith and should therefore be ignored.’ https://twitter.com/...
Phil Magness / @philwmagness: Wow. This is an outright propagandistic attempt to gloss over the fact that the NYT violated basic journalistic ethics by deleting several controversial passages from the #1619Project after they became lightening rods for criticism. https://twitter.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Anna Merlan / @annamerlan: Good blog from Laura, who I prefer to trash right to her face!!!!! https://twitter.com/...
@motherboard: NEW: New York Times staff were told that the paper welcomes “vigorous exchange,” but only if they're op-ed columnists. https://www.vice.com/...
German Lopez / @germanrlopez: This seems like a good rule. Twitter and Slack lead to unfiltered, often personal public fighting, while articles have to go through a rigorous editing process that makes sure people are focusing on substance and aren't just being jerks to each other. https://twitter.com/...
Phil Magness / @philwmagness: If the deleted “true founding” line was “obviously metaphorical,” @nhannahjones sure didn't treat it that way for the first 6 months of 1619 Project publicity appearances.
Phil Magness / @philwmagness: No consideration of the fact that such deletions, taking place without any notice by the paper, breach basic ethical norms of journalism. Just nonsensical allegations that I'm working in “bad faith” by pointing it out - even though I've engaged the 1619 Project content in detail
Elias G. Saba / @egsaba_ia: @laurawags @drewmagary It's wild that they think the internal Slack is as much a public forum as Twitter.
Tim Marchman / @timmarchman: New from @laurawags: At a staff meeting a top Times editor defended Bret Stephens shitting on the 1619 Project as part of a “vigorous exchange” but reminded staff not to shit on colleagues on Twitter or Slack https://www.vice.com/...
Jason Koebler / @jason_koebler: “culture of respect” internally say whatever you want on the column tho https://www.vice.com/...
@kevinwglass: “why is an opinion columnist allowed to write this but I'm not allowed to tweet about it” if all your tweets had to go through the same level of review that Stephens' column went through, you'd scarcely be able to tweet even once or twice about Bari Weiss!
@johnastoehr: Correction: you can only criticize coworkers if you're Bret Stephens. https://twitter.com/...
@ethangach: “Ryan said that she was not drawing a parallel between the 1619 Project, a widely praised examination of the brutal legacy of American slavery, and Miller's reporting, widely reviled and deeply flawed work that provided cover for the US to invade Iraq” https://www.vice.com/...
Patricia Hernandez / @xpatriciah: i will believe this when a white coworker's award-winning project also gets trashed https://www.vice.com/...
RELATED:
Jake Silverstein / New York Times:
A defense of the editing changes in summaries of The 1619 Project, following new criticisms from people including NYT columnist Bret Stephens
A defense of the editing changes in summaries of The 1619 Project, following new criticisms from people including NYT columnist Bret Stephens
Discussion:
@kathrynannette, @mosilverstein, @jamalandress, @emmadaly, @jamalandress, @johnmccrory, @gabrieljr and @bobbyknndy
Discussion:
@kathrynannette: I wish for every black woman in America to have this kind of boss. Often when the hits start coming, we are left alone on an island to defend ourselves. I love the #1619project & @nhannahjones & I love the way her boss has publicly & consistently defended & celebrated her work. https://twitter.com/...
Mo Silverstein / @mosilverstein: On Recent Criticism of The 1619 Project https://www.nytimes.com/... Bravo, Jake! Thoughtful, careful, but with a driving passion for advancing the profoundly important conversation that the “project” has begun. In solidarity.
Jamal Andress / @jamalandress: 1/2 “Hannah-Jones is not only asking readers to consider the full weight of slavery and its aftermath; she is asking readers to think of the 244 years of effort to live up to our founding ideals as part of a larger freedom story,... https://twitter.com/...
@emmadaly: Hear hear!! “The project @nhannahjones created is one of the most transformative works of journalism @nytimes has ever published. It was not perfect; few things of any ambition ever are. But 14 months after publication, its “core premises” remain unshaken and indispensable.” https://twitter.com/...
Jamal Andress / @jamalandress: 2/2 ... one that began 157 years earlier and features Black Americans as its heroic subjects." https://www.nytimes.com/...
John McCrory / @johnmccrory: Fascinating response by @jakesilverstein to 1619 Project critics shows the reality of complex governance, workflow and technical platform challenges omnichannel brands & publications still have to solve. https://www.nytimes.com/... https://twitter.com/...
Gabe Rosenberg / @gabrieljr: As with all of his work, it's obvious Bret Stephens did little to no research, got little to no fact-checking, and didn't bother talking to the people he writes about. It's sad @jakesilverstein has to explain basic journalism to a @nytopinion columnist. https://www.nytimes.com/...
Jon Henley / The Guardian:
Dutch state broadcaster NOS says it has removed its logo from its broadcast vans because its journalists and crews are subjected daily to abuse by the far right — The Dutch state broadcaster has removed its logo from outside broadcast vans as politicians complained of a steep rise in threats …
Paul O'Donnell / Dallas Morning News:
Journalists at The Dallas Morning News and Al Día have voted 84-28 in favor of a union, in an election overseen by the NLRB — The Dallas News Guild says it will soon elect officers so contract talks can begin. … The National Relations Labor Board in Fort Worth …
Discussion:
@dallasnewsguild: Workers at @AlDiaDallas and @dallasnews voted 84 to 28 to unionize the newsroom today after the NLRB counted the mail-in ballots via Zoom. This makes our institution the only unionized newsroom in Texas. Today, we celebrate a historic victory for our workers! https://twitter.com/...
Tom Dotan / The Information:
Mediaocean: ad spending on Snapchat more than doubled for July to September compared to the same period in 2019; some advertisers shifted budgets from Facebook — When Facebook reports third-quarter earnings later this month, the results are expected to show that the summer advertiser boycott …
Discussion:
@theinformation: While this summer's Facebook ad boycott had minimal impact on the company's total revenue, Snapchat and Pinterest saw a significant increase in spending as advertisers shifted budgets towards those platforms. Reporting by @cityofthetown https://www.theinformation.com/ ...
Karlene Lukovitz / MediaPost: Snap, Pinterest Snapped Up Ad Crumbs From Facebook Boycott: Report
Rick Edmonds / Poynter:
Gannett CEO Mike Reed announced that the company will be offering another round of voluntary buyouts starting next week — The company's CEO announced the changes during a town hall Wednesday. Offer letters to potential buyout volunteers will be sent out Monday.
Lucas Shaw / Bloomberg:
Sources: Comcast's NBCUniversal and some PE firms approached Disney earlier this year about acquiring Hulu or operating it as a partnership, but were rebuffed — Toward the end of 2019, Hulu delivered a proposal to Walt Disney Co., its controlling shareholder, outlining a strategy to expand …
Discussion:
Gizmodo, @entstrategyguy, @masasoncap, @theericgoldman, @theericgoldman, @johnjedwards3, @masasoncap, The Streamable and @theericgoldman
Discussion:
Joanna Nelius / Gizmodo: Disney Apparently Has No Idea What to Do With Hulu—For Now
@entstrategyguy: @MasaSonCap @kasey__moore Still leaves me worried about Disney's global plans. I get they are going to use Star/Disney+/ESPN+ as the drivers, but I think the latest re-org really will exacerbate the “US v International” mindset.
@masasoncap: @kasey__moore Make sense to me. If Comcast was under the impression Disney was going to expand Hulu internationally and they don't, that seems like a miss by Comcast, and a shrewd move by Disney.
Eric Goldman / @theericgoldman: I think that has to be their huge eternal debate. They chose that name because of the power it holds as a brand but with it comes the “family friendly” perception. How far can they/should they bend that? I think both company folks and the public have a lot of varied thoughts. https://twitter.com/...
Eric Goldman / @theericgoldman: Interesting article about why Disney's grand, global plans for Hulu have not come to fruition. Lots to ponder about its future, including the “Could become a hub on Disney+” mention - because again, Disney owns a LOT of non kid-friendly content https://www.bloomberg.com/...
John J. Edwards III / @johnjedwards3: While Disney was identifying streaming as its top priority, it was second-guessing just how much it wanted to invest in one of its primary platforms: Hulu. Great deep dive by @Lucas_Shaw https://www.bloomberg.com/... via @business
@masasoncap: @EntStrategyGuy @kasey__moore If they want to go international they need to go local, which is expensive, so time to attack the most profitable countries first, have excess adult library beyond Disney+ to fall back on for Star including the Fox library, and don't buy international rights to strong US content.