Fake News Advice for Twitter’s New CEO
Twitter announced this week that Parag Agrawal will be the new CEO of the social media giant. (This is an incredible achievement for India-born Agrawal given the selection process heavily favored people born in India.) He has a tough job ahead of him, trying to maintain the site’s reputation for quick and free comments. , while protecting the platform from any dangerous misinformation.
Agrawal is probably aware of the mounds – and I mean mounds – of irrefutable SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE that Conservatives are gullible paranoid, constantly falling into the trap of disinformation and hoaxes. For example, consider these 100% objective university studies:
“Conservatives more likely to believe fake news, new study finds” – Maggie Fox, CNN, June 2, 2021
“Return of the paranoid style: fake news fools conservatives more than liberals.” Why?” – The Economist, June 3, 2020
“Conservative Susceptibility to Political Misperceptions” – R. Kelly Garrett and Robert M. Bond, Scientists progress, June 2, 2021
On the flip side, come to think of it, even powerful Democrats, establishment news outlets, and influential celebrities are notorious for getting the news rated wrong.
Hey! It reminds me – the Jussie Smollett trial starts this week! (It’s good that I remember this as I write this column.)
Smollett, you will recall, is the half-black, half-Jewish gay actor formerly of the Fox television show “Empire” who claimed, in January 2019, that he had left his Chicago apartment at 2 morning hours in the middle of a polar vortex. to get a sandwich, after which he was violently assaulted by two white guys shouting racist and homophobic slurs. (Although they are racist and homophobic, they were big fans of “Empire”, immediately acknowledging Smollett.)
They punched him in the face, tied a noose around his neck, and sprayed him with a “chemical substance.” (Yes, luckily the whites wore a noose and chemical agents. Duh. It was a polar vortex.)
For an added bonus of authenticity, Smollett said his attackers had shouted, “This is MAGA country!” Did I mention it was in Chicago? (Trump: 12.4% of the 2016 vote.)
Actor Jussie Smollett leaves the Leighton Courthouse after his court appearance on March 26, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Nuccio DiNuzzo / Getty Images)
Even a skeptic would have to admit that Smollett’s account sounded like the truth. When you add (to an already very believable story) the fact that there have been dozens of “noose incidents” over the past few decades, and each and every one of them, without exception, has turned out to be being a hoax, his story only becomes more convincing!
To move forward with the conclusion, the Chicago Police Department spent 3,000 man-hours carefully examining the watch tapes of the neighborhood where the incident occurred and determined that – please sit down for it. – the “attackers” turned out to be two Nigerian extras on “Empire.” (This explains how they could have recognized him.) After their arrests, they admitted that Smollett paid them $ 3,500 to organize the attack.
The liberals, those calm, impartial seekers of truth – not conservative fools, with their “paranoid style” and “sensitivity” to “fake news” – reacted to Smollett’s alleged attack with the cool detachment that we do. expect them.
“What happened to @JussieSmollett today should never be tolerated in this country. We must stand up and demand that we no longer give refuge to this hatred; that homophobia and racism have no place in our streets or in our hearts. We’re with you, Jussie. – Joe Biden
What happened today to @JussieSmollett should never be tolerated in this country. We must stand up and demand that we no longer give refuge to this hatred; that homophobia and racism have no place in our streets or in our hearts. We’re with you, Jussie. https://t.co/o8ilPu68CM
– Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) January 30, 2019
“@JussieSmollett is one of the nicest, sweetest human beings I know… It was a modern day lynching attempt. No one should have to fear for their life because of their sexuality or the color of their skin. We have to face this hatred. – so-Sen. Kamala harris
“The racist and homophobic attack… is an affront to our humanity. No one should be attacked for who they are or who they love. I pray that Jussie will recover quickly and that justice will be served. May we all make a commitment to end this hatred once and for all. “- Representative Nancy Pelosi
“It’s a sickening and scandalous attack, and horribly, it is the latest of too many hate crimes against LGBTQ people and people of color. We are all responsible for condemning this behavior and anyone who allows or normalizes it. Pray for Jussie and her family. – Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
“There is no such thing as a ‘racial accusation’. This attack was not “possibly” homophobic. It was a racist and homophobic attack. If you don’t like what is happening to our country, then work to change it. It is nobody’s job to mitigate or water down the rise in hate crimes. “- Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
“As for the heinous attack on @JussieSmollett, another reminder that Trump’s rise and the resulting climate of hatred means lives have been on the line more and more since 2015. Smollett could have been killed by those thugs who shout MAGA. Let it sink. – Karen Attiah, Editor-in-Chief, Washington Post
Regarding the heinous attack on @JussieSmollett, yet another reminder that Trump’s rise and the resulting climate of hatred have put lives on the line since 2015.
Smollett could have been killed by these thugs shouting MAGA. Let it flow.
– Karen Attiah (@KarenAttiah) January 29, 2019
“The horrific attack on Jussie Smollett has no place in a society worthy of the love of humans. Homophobia existed before Trump, but there is no doubt that since he injected his hatred into American blood, we are less decent, less human and less loving. No intolerance! No DT! “- Director Rob Reiner
“Jussie Smollett was violently attacked by two white men who poured bleach on her and put a noose around his neck. He was targeted for being black and for being gay. This is why we must have zero tolerance against homophobia and racism. Jussie’s life matters. – Actress Olivia Munn
“Heartbroken and furious reading of the attack on @JussieSmollett. I want Trump and all the crazy MAGA people to burn in hell. – Actor Billy Eichner
All this tantalizing nonsense, about something that was an obvious hoax from day one, was posted on the same social media site Agrawal is about to oversee. Almost identical tweets from almost identical liberals could be produced for similarly deranged positions on Nick Sandmann, Kyle Rittenhouse, Althea Bernstein, the NASCAR “noose”, the “Klansman” at Oberlin College, the attack on ‘racist’ bus in Albany, Trump supporters ripping hijabs on Muslim girls, racist graffiti at Air Force Academy, the noose at Columbia’s Teachers College, the Duke butt rape hoax, the rape hoax collective of the University of Virginia, bomb threats in the synagogue and so on.
Good luck to you, Mr. Agrawal.
