Buterin and Winklevosses Address Twitter Censorship Battle

NewsColony
Buterin and Winklevosses Address Twitter Censorship Battle

Ethereum creator, Vitalik Buterin, and Gemini exchange founders, Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, expressed their opinions on recent efforts at social media censorship.

“I’ve talked before about the rise of corporations regulating governments but here we have Twitter soft-censoring the U.S. president on the grounds of incitement of violence,” Buterin said in a May 29 tweet referencing recent Twitter posts from U.S. President Donald Trump.

“This is a major escalation and could be a new chapter in relations between corporations and states,” Buterin added.

A tangled mess of tweets, executive orders, and events

Expectations yesterday saw Trump signing an executive order relating to media censorship. Trump followed through on signing the order, Bloomberg detailed on May 29.

Seven minutes before midnight on May 28, Trump tweeted on the protests in Minnesota over the death of George Floyd. Noting a need for better leadership in Minneapolis, Trump said he would send the United States National Guard to the city if necessary.

Immediately after, the president added the following tweet — which Twitter flagged, citing a breach of the platform’s rules:

“These THUGS are dishonoring the memory of George Floyd, and I won’t let that happen. Just spoke to Governor Tim Walz and told him that the Military is with him all the way. Any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts. Thank you!”

Buterin said people should pay attention

Trump’s posts, as well as Twitter’s responsive action, ignited Buterin’s previously noted comments on the scene. “This is significant and could have far-reaching consequences and you should pay attention,” Buterin said in a comment his original tweet, in response to a community member’s question.

Buterin clarified he does not endorse provoking violence. A better system might include “social media designs that naturally create selection pressures that favor positive content, and do so in a way that’s credibly neutral,” according to Buterin.

The Ethereum creator also noted that high-ranking government authority figures will have a large audience, regardless of the social media platform, simply due to their status.

Cameron Winklevoss against censorship efforts

In relation to Twitter’s recent fact-checking escapade, Gemini exchange co-founder and early Bitcoiner Cameron Winklevoss tweeted a statement of opposition. “Imagine if a phone company fact-checked your calls or the post office fact checked your mail?” he said on May 29.

Cameron’s brother Tyler also spoke out against the action, playing on a common quote from George Orwell’s 1945 book, Animal Farm. “All tweets are equal, but some tweets are more equal than others,” Tyler tweeted.

Twin brothers Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss made a name for their crypto exchange and its efforts working with regulators. In a recent podcast episode, the pair expressed the need for rules, but also included points on over-regulation.

Source: Cointelegraph

The post Buterin and Winklevosses Address Twitter Censorship Battle appeared first on NewsColony.
NewsColony

source https://newscolony.com/buterin-and-winklevosses-address-twitter-censorship-battle/

Volunteers book hotel room for homeless man with SingapoRediscovers vouchers

NewsColony Volunteers book hotel room for homeless man with SingapoRediscovers vouchers © The Independent Singapore Singapore — A group of volunteers from the Mummy Yummy Singapore welfare organisation donated their SingapoRediscovers Vouchers to book a hotel room for a homeless man. The man, who was identified as Jayden, did not have a place to live while waiting for the Housing Board (HDB) to allocate him a rental flat. In a Facebook post on Mummy Yummy Singapore’s page on Wednesday (Dec 16), the volunteers said: “We used our $100 Rediscover Singapore vouchers to redeem hotel stay for him and successfully booked 9 days worth of stay at 3 days per voucher.” They added that they were unable to book a longer stay because of higher hotel rates over Christmas and New Year. The volunteers hoped that they would be able to bridge Jayden’s stay until he got a flat. “Thanks our government for giving us these vouchers which in return we can put them to good use for people in need,” th...

Disabled people are still vulnerable, even as COVID-19 normalizes their ‘special’ needs

Disabled people are still vulnerable, even as COVID-19 normalizes their ‘special’ needs NewsColony Perhaps it’s appropriate that public notices of the COVID-19 crisis began as an ableist cruelty. Health officials assured the nation that only the elderly and those with chronic health conditions would be seriously affected; most Americans (i.e., the normal people) would have only mild symptoms and be fine. x A friendly reminder: people who will be high-risk patients if we get coronavirus can hear you when you reassure everyone we’re the only ones who might die. Ã¢Â€Â” Alexandra Brodsky (@azbrodsky) February 29, 2020 Soon after the announcement of those assurances, the likelihood of high-risk people surviving was further limited by the people more likely to be fine. Shopping frenzies cleared stores of essential supplies needed everyday by many disabled people, like thermometers, hand wipes, masks, and IV infusion supplies. Accustomed to their needs ...

Coronavirus UK: BBC makes changes to ‘lift people’s spirits’

Coronavirus UK: BBC makes changes to ‘lift people’s spirits’ NewsColony BBC viewers have been warned that ‘things will look and sound a bit different’ during the coronavirus crisis. In a blog post on the corporation’s website, BBC News Chief Fran Unsworth outlined a number of changes its newsroom was making in light of the ‘rapidly evolving situation’. Among the changes, presenters will doing their own make-up, many interviews will be conducted remotely and the BBC will rely more on its network of local reporters, Ms Unsworth explained. TV veterans Mr Motivator and Angela Rippon have also signed up for a new BBC One show to lift people’s spirits during the pandemic. HealthCheck UK Live, with Watchdog’s Michelle Ackerley and CBBC star Dr Xand van Tulleken will air every weekday for two weeks. TV veterans Mr Motivator and Angela Rippon have also signed up for a new BBC One show to lift people’s spirits during the pandemic HealthCheck UK Live, with Wa...

NewsColony

Search This Blog