You have to hand it to Tesla and X (formerly Twitter) CEO Elon Musk: He continues to find new ways to make his social media platform worse. In addition to dismantling the site’s Trust and Safety Council, reinstating a user who posts child pornography, and spewing right-wing conspiracy theories to his 165.8 million followers, Musk has now reinstated InfoWars owner and infamous right-wing troll Alex Jones.
Musk put Jones’ reinstatement to a Twitter poll, which saw his fellow trolls and followers voting in favor. He then tweeted “Vox Populi, Vox Dei,” the Latin phrase that translates to “the voice of the people is the voice of God.” Musk employs this quote whenever he enacts a decision made by his sycophantic followers.
It’s a match made in Hell, as the duo have so much in common. They both love to spread dangerous conspiracy theories, they’ve both been accused of harassing and abusing their employees, and they’re both rabid antisemites. Someone get these two a room! And then lock the door. And then launch that room into space for the good of humanity.
Jones and InfoWars were banned from Twitter in 2018 for abusive behavior and subsequently de-platformed from Facebook/Meta and YouTube months later. In addition to spreading harmful right-wing conspiracy theories, Jones was notorious for claiming that the Sandy Hook school shooting, where 26 people (20 of whom were children) were murdered, was a “false flag” operation. This bald-faced lie inspired his followers to target and harass the grieving parents and loved ones of the victims, compounding their unimaginable suffering.
Jones was found liable in multiple class action defamation suits and was ordered to pay more than $1 billion dollars to the Sandy Hook families in damages. When asked last year if he would reinstate Jones’ account, Musk tweeted, “My firstborn child died in my arms. I felt his last heartbeat. I have no mercy for anyone who would use the deaths of children for gain, politics or fame.”For the record, Musk’s ex-wife Justine Musk tweeted in response, “And not that it matters to anyone except me, because it is one of the most sacred and defining moments of my life, but I was the one who was holding him.”
Musk later tweeted, “I vehemently disagree with what he said about Sandy Hook, but are we a platform that believes in freedom of speech or are we not? That is what it comes down to in the end. If the people vote him back on, this will be bad for X financially, but principles matter more than money.” Yes, bring back a monstrous grifter who targeted grieving families OF DEAD CHILDREN so he can shill some more boner pills. My, what a principled stance. Someone get this guy a plaque.
In reinstating Jones’ account, Musk has once again made it clear that X is a bastion of free speech … if that speech is virulently right-wing and hateful. Now that he has cursed out advertisers and driven countless users from his site, he has finally crafted the echo chamber of his dreams. And with such miserable company too. They deserve each other.
(featured image: Chesnot/Sergio Flores/Getty Images)
Published: Dec 10, 2023 04:59 pm