OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Actor James Woods is planning on suing the Democrat National Committee after it was revealed that Twitter censored him at the behest of the Democrat Party operatives.
He appear on Fox News on Friday, hours after the revelations that were shown by new Twitter CEO Elon Musk, and said he would be getting an attorney and suing.
One of the tweets shared by journalist Matt Taibbi showed internal communication between Twitter employees.
“An additional report from the DNC,” one employee said on Oct. 24, 2020.
It showed a tweet shared by Twitter user @stephen_liuhuan and a link to a Tweet that was shared by Woods.
“I grabbed the first one under SI…defer to Safety on the high profile second one,” another Twitter employee said on October 25.
Both of the tweets were deleted and the account of @stephen_liuhuan is still suspended.
“The Stephen_liuhuan tweet was a link to Hunter Biden weighing and using drugs, and another link to a Hunter Biden sex tape. The James Wood tweet is Hunter Biden smoking crack and getting a foot job,” Washington Free Beacon reporter Andrew Kerr said.
Woods was furious when he spoke to Carlson.
“I can guarantee you one thing more than anything else you’ll ever hear in your life: I will be getting a lawyer. I will be suing the Democratic National Committee no matter what,” the actor said.
“Whether I win or lose, I am going to stand up for the rights that every American – not a so-called celebrity. I’m not a celebrity — I’m hardly recognizable anymore because my career has been destroyed by these very people,” he said.
“And I will sue. And I’m hoping other people will sue,” he said. “And if it turns out there are a lot of us on this list where the DNC targeted us, then I will quote the immortal words of Joseph Welch when he attacked [Wisconsin Senator] Joseph McCarthy for the enemies list he had – ‘At long last or have you no shame?””
“I think it is a compliment, but, it’s a big price to pay. It’s not a lot of fun. I loved my career for 50 years. I was happy to be an award-winning and honored and appreciated actor, and I miss my career,” the actor said.
He also commented about a case he won against a Twitter user who accused him of being a cocaine addict.
“Someone said, why would you do it? I said I’m going to defend my name… And if I have to be the flag bearer for this, then so be it. I’ll be proud to do it,” he said.
In a series of tweets, Twitter CEO Elon Musk has blown the lid off the Hunter Biden laptop story being suppressed at Twitter before he was the company’s owner.
He originally planned to live tweet the information at 5PM EST, but later said that they had to do some fact checking and it would have to wait 40 minutes past the originally planned time.
What really happened with the Hunter Biden story suppression by Twitter will be published on Twitter at 5pm ET!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 2, 2022
We’re double-checking some facts, so probably start live tweeting in about 40 mins
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 2, 2022
This will be awesome 🍿
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 2, 2022
https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1598781950478716928
The thread shared by Musk showed that both parties were allowed to ask for tweets to be removed and that those requests were honored, but because Twitter staff leaned Democra they were more often honored for Democrats.
At the behest of Musk the thread was shared by author, journalist and podcaster Matt Taibbi.
1. Thread: THE TWITTER FILES
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 2, 2022
3. The “Twitter Files” tell an incredible story from inside one of the world’s largest and most influential social media platforms. It is a Frankensteinian tale of a human-built mechanism grown out the control of its designer.
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 2, 2022
5. In an early conception, Twitter more than lived up to its mission statement, giving people “the power to create and share ideas and information instantly, without barriers.”
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 2, 2022
7. Slowly, over time, Twitter staff and executives began to find more and more uses for these tools. Outsiders began petitioning the company to manipulate speech as well: first a little, then more often, then constantly.
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 2, 2022
9. Celebrities and unknowns alike could be removed or reviewed at the behest of a political party: pic.twitter.com/4uzkHnQ65E
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 2, 2022
11. This system wasn't balanced. It was based on contacts. Because Twitter was and is overwhelmingly staffed by people of one political orientation, there were more channels, more ways to complain, open to the left (well, Democrats) than the right. https://t.co/sa1uVRNhuH pic.twitter.com/K1xmqQ0TrD
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 3, 2022
Okay, there was more throat-clearing about the process, but screw it, let's jump forward
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 3, 2022
Okay, there was more throat-clearing about the process, but screw it, let's jump forward
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 3, 2022
17. On October 14, 2020, the New York Post published BIDEN SECRET EMAILS, an expose based on the contents of Hunter Biden’s abandoned laptop: https://t.co/q4zaMw6aVV
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 3, 2022
20.This led public policy executive Caroline Strom to send out a polite WTF query. Several employees noted that there was tension between the comms/policy teams, who had little/less control over moderation, and the safety/trust teams: pic.twitter.com/0IFnVPCOgY
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 3, 2022
22. Although several sources recalled hearing about a “general” warning from federal law enforcement that summer about possible foreign hacks, there’s no evidence – that I've seen – of any government involvement in the laptop story. In fact, that might have been the problem…
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 3, 2022
24. “They just freelanced it,” is how one former employee characterized the decision. “Hacking was the excuse, but within a few hours, pretty much everyone realized that wasn’t going to hold. But no one had the guts to reverse it.”
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 3, 2022
https://t.co/j4EeXEAw6F can see the confusion in the following lengthy exchange, which ends up including Gadde and former Trust and safety chief Yoel Roth. Comms official Trenton Kennedy writes, “I'm struggling to understand the policy basis for marking this as unsafe”: pic.twitter.com/w1wBMlG33U
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 3, 2022
28. To which former Deputy General Counsel Jim Baker again seems to advise staying the non-course, because “caution is warranted”: pic.twitter.com/tg4D0gLWI6
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 3, 2022
29. A fundamental problem with tech companies and content moderation: many people in charge of speech know/care little about speech, and have to be told the basics by outsiders. To wit:
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 3, 2022
Gadde replies quickly, immediately diving into the weeds of Twitter policy, unaware Khanna is more worried about the Bill of Rights: pic.twitter.com/U4FRLYYPaY
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 3, 2022
33.Within a day, head of Public Policy Lauren Culbertson receives a ghastly letter/report from Carl Szabo of the research firm NetChoice, which had already polled 12 members of congress – 9 Rs and 3 Democrats, from “the House Judiciary Committee to Rep. Judy Chu’s office.” pic.twitter.com/UpBoq97QkB
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 3, 2022
35.Szabo reports to Twitter that some Hill figures are characterizing the laptop story as “tech’s Access Hollywood moment”: pic.twitter.com/JTvXoQh6ZK
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 3, 2022
36.Twitter files continued:
"THE FIRST AMENDMENT ISN’T ABSOLUTE”
Szabo’s letter contains chilling passages relaying Democratic lawmakers’ attitudes. They want “more” moderation, and as for the Bill of Rights, it's "not absolute" pic.twitter.com/cWdNYIprp8— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 3, 2022
An amazing subplot of the Twitter/Hunter Biden laptop affair was how much was done without the knowledge of CEO Jack Dorsey, and how long it took for the situation to get "unfucked" (as one ex-employee put it) even after Dorsey jumped in.
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 3, 2022
This week Musk announced that he met with Apple CEO Tim Cook and the two talked about some important things. It came after many had called for Apple to remove Twitter from the App Store after Musk became CEO.
“Thanks @tim_cook for taking me around Apple’s beautiful HQ,” he said in a tweet showing scenery from the tech giant’s headquarters.
“Good conversation. Among other things, we resolved the misunderstanding about Twitter potentially being removed from the App Store. Tim was clear that Apple never considered doing so,” he said.
Good conversation. Among other things, we resolved the misunderstanding about Twitter potentially being removed from the App Store. Tim was clear that Apple never considered doing so.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 30, 2022
Musk announced on Monday that Apple has mostly stopped advertising on Twitter, which would make it one of the most high-profile companies to pull ads from the social media platform.
“Apple has mostly stopped advertising on Twitter. Do they hate free speech in America?,” Musk said in a tweet. He later tagged Apple Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook’s Twitter account in another tweet, asking “what’s going on here?”
