[News] Twitter Erupts After 2, 000 Pro-Venezuelan Accounts Are Deleted

[Anti-Imperialist News]

https://venezuelanalysis.com/news/14294


  Twitter Erupts After 2,000 Pro-Venezuelan Accounts Are Deleted

February 4, 2019
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Nearly 2,000 pro-Venezuelan Twitter accounts have been removed for 
“engaging in a state-backed influence campaign,” the social media 
company said in a blog post on Thursday.

A total of 1,196 social media accounts 
<https://www.telesurenglish.net/opinion/Why-Did-Facebook-Purge-TeleSUR-English-20180816-0016.html> based 
in Venezuela suspected of attempting to “influence domestic audiences” 
were purged last week.

Another 764 accounts were deleted, although the San Francisco-based 
company told users, “We are unable to definitively tie the accounts 
located in Venezuela to information operations of a foreign government 
against another country.”

Allegations of censorship soon filled the site’s timeline.

Television host for the investigatory series, Empire Files, Abby Martin 
tweeted, “While pro-coup Venezuelans & right-wing exiles dominate the 
media sphere, tech companies are actively censoring pro-government 
accounts they say are working to "influence" people.”

Another journalist, Ben Norton, accused the company of catering to “U.S. 
government interests:” Twitter is now removing thousands of accounts 
supposedly linked to Venezuela's sovereign government. This comes after 
Twitter suspended Venezuelan government accounts 1.5 years ago. Social 
media corporations act as an extension of US government interests.”

In another blog post, Twitter announced the release of five new datasets 
which were allegedly created in relation to suspected foreign 
interference efforts it had encountered.

The decision coincides with harsher sanctions against Venezuela imposed 
by the United States after opposition lawmaker Juan Guaido lead a coup 
on Jan. 23, declaring himself the country's "interim president," an 
illegal and unconstitutional move.

Guaido, the United States and right-wing governments in the region have 
been calling on the Venezuelan military to oust Maduro. There have been 
whispers in Washington that the Donald Trump administration is 
“seriously considering” a military intervention in Venezuela if Maduro 
does not step down or be ousted internally.

The social media company has been known to arbitrarily delete accounts 
before particularly those supporting movements in Iran, Russia, or 
Bangladesh, citing “malicious” activity, “inauthentic behavior” or 
contributing to national conflict.

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