Donald Trump has signed an executive order targeting Twitter, after the US President was embodied in a fact-checking row with the social media company.
US president, Donald Trump threatened to close down social media platforms, a day after Twitter posted a fact-checking notice on one of his tweets.
Trump’s threat came day after Twitter Inc. for the first time added a warning to some of his tweets that prompted readers to fact check the president’s tweet that claimed mail-in ballots could allow widespread voter fraud. It immediately led to a presidential eruption accusing the platform of “completely stifling FREE SPEECH”.
On Thursday, Twitter added “get the facts about Covid-19” tags to two tweets from a Chinese government spokesman who claimed the coronavirus had originated in the US.
Reacting to Trump treats, Twitter CEO, said he is “ultimately accountable” for Twitter’s actions regarding the fact-check links on the president’s tweets, and implored the public to “leave our employees out of this.” Jack wrote;
“Fact check: there is someone ultimately accountable for our actions as a company, and that’s me. Please leave our employees out of this. We’ll continue to point out incorrect or disputed information about elections globally. And we will admit to and own any mistakes we make.
This does not make us an “arbiter of truth.” Our intention is to connect the dots of conflicting statements and show the information in dispute so people can judge for themselves. More transparency from us is critical so folks can clearly see the why behind our actions.”
Trump has now signed an executive order aimed at removing some of the legal protections given to social media platforms.
The order which is expected to face legal challenges gives regulators the power to pursue legal actions against firms such as Facebook and Twitter for the way they police content on their platforms.
President Trump accused social media platforms of having “unchecked power” while signing the order.
The president has regularly accused social media platforms of stifling or censoring conservative voices.
