[COMMENTARY] Twitter Suspends Several Conservative Satire Accounts

Twitter is living up to its promise of cracking down on accounts that share misleading information or spread deliberate propaganda, even under the guise of satire. Last month, the platform announced it would be taking a more aggressive approach regarding accounts pushing the controversial QAnon conspiracy theory. Today, it permanently suspended several Conservative satire accounts including the Babylon Bee. Although Twitter reversed that suspension within an hour (explaining that they had received multiple complaints about several of their tweets), other accounts were still suspended as of Monday night.

The specific reason for those suspensions is unknown; however, the Babylon Bee (which refers to itself as “Your Source for Christian News Satire”) is not the only conservative satire account to come under fire. Titania McGrath, NPC Daily, Liberal Larry, and Jarvis DuPont have all recently been suspended.

Several Conservative pundits and other high profile pro-Trump accounts immediately jumped on the ban, because any distraction from Trump is a good distraction.

Because people are either too stupid or too petty to appreciate satire, Twitter has banned The Babylon Bee.

BTW, follow me over at Parler: https://t.co/XPhPJ6VUnF

— Dana Loesch (@DLoesch) August 17, 2020

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Oh, c’mon, @jack, the @TitaniaMcGrath account is pure satire. Get the soy out of your veins. We’ll be happy to pay for transfusions of real blood. How can you be so fearful of satire so gentle? Come out of the basement, buddy. Honestly the sky really isn’t falling. https://t.co/0X6QpnGGwe

— James Woods (@RealJamesWoods) August 17, 2020

These accounts are thriving uncensored on Parler, as indicated by Loesch’s tweet above. Despite a much-hyped roll out, the struggling Parler has 2.8 million users as compared to Twitter’s 300 million and Facebook’s 2.6 billion active users. It stands to reason that the type of user who would enjoy Parler’s more relaxed terms of service would, in their words, ‘walk away’ from Twitter. But since the 2016 election cycle showed everyone just how easily social media can be manipulated to sway real life voting results, it stands to reason that the Conservative accounts (who spend most of their time on Twitter whining about Twitter being too restrictive) will incorporate those same tactics.