The slow but sure drip of the Twitter Files has brought forth curious results from one end of the political spectrum to the other. Many on the left either have tuned out the disturbing information or chosen to wallow in their disbelief. On the right, the persecuted have reacted in several ways: Some are breathing a sigh of relief, while others are more anxious than ever. And while this shameful tale has not come to its denouement, a few elements in this war on free speech are worth observing.
The Twitter Files Shall Set You Free?
Psychosis is defined as “a severe mental disorder in which thought and emotions are so impaired that contact is lost with external reality.” This aptly describes how many on the left have reacted to the disturbing amount of control government agencies exerted over Twitter and its users. Several credible journalists have made public ample proof that pressure was put on the social media company to sift through and concurrently suspend or throttle back its users based on content.
The gravity of the situation was made manifest through the sheer number of individuals whose posts were ghosted and the breadth and depth of suppressed topics. The evidence of US authorities actively seeking to control the social media platform is overwhelming. Despite the effort to omit this information in the corporate-leftist media, most Americans are at least aware of the Twitter Files. Yet when queried about this troubling situation, one millennial recently told Liberty Nation, “I just think all that Twitter File stuff was made up – probably by Elon Musk.” This type of reaction indicates a willfully blind mindset that will not allow facts to interfere with a predisposed set of beliefs.
Meanwhile, those on the right are dealing with the Twitter Files in one of two ways: Either they are breathing a sigh of relief or have become even more paranoid about social media persecution. This is not to say the latter are not grounded in logic – just that it exists.
Exhibit A of this social media persecution complex can be found in an article on the Brownstone Institute’s website. Jeffrey A. Tucker, president and founder of Brownstone, explained it this way:
“For years, my Facebook account has been irrelevant to me. I don’t even know why I bother using it at all. We know for sure that Facebook has been subject to the same controls that once affected Twitter. Same goes for LinkedIn and Google, of course. No doubt about that. My typical post sits there with almost no reach at all. What I’ve not known is whether I’m targeted directly or my account has long been restricted by virtue of keywords and content.”
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Tucker has a justifiable reason for his persecution complex, as do all conservatives who strongly suspected -- or now know for certain -- they were targeted (LibertyNation.com included). But now we know the truth, and the truth has not set us free. In many cases, it has fed into the fear and anxiety that come with being treated as an enemy of the state merely for holding a different set of political beliefs. “The freedom and reach we get today on Twitter is beautiful, but how long can it last? Is this a brief window that is opened before it shuts again?” Tucker worried aloud.
Just because Twitter has come clean doesn’t mean the rest of social media isn’t as dirty as week-old snow on a highway in Buffalo. But the information released in the Twitter Files is so damning that we may be witnessing the beginning of the end of the thrill ride that Americans had with these social media platforms.
The signs are easily found if you follow the money. The price of Meta shares (Facebook’s parent company) plummeted by 70% in 2022. Massive layoffs affected thousands of its employees, and the number of active users has stalled.
One wonders if America’s honeymoon with social media is beginning to ebb before our eyes. That might seem far-fetched to some but remember when “You’ve got mail!” was so exciting? Now email is pure drudgery that many users do their level best to ignore. Perhaps this is the future path for many of these social media platforms. If so, social media giants have no one to blame but themselves and their cowardice when they said “how high” to the government’s demand that they jump. After all, the authorities had to ask Twitter to meet their dastardly needs, and the powers-that-be at Twitter could have said no. Instead, they pledged their allegiance to the authorities and left their loyal users high and dry. Suspending freedom of speech needed cooperation, and Twitter handed it to the government on a silver platter – and for that alone, it should never be forgiven or forgotten.
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