The 45th POTUS - Donald J. Trump

[McParadigm]

It's an attempt to silence him.

Literally every White House press release is at his command. Every single one gets posted online. What’s to stop him from issuing every tweetable thought that way? Why would the public who so respect his direct communication not go there and read them? My understanding is that they’re desperate for his every word.

posted where? how many people will go wherever his press conferences are posted? What's to stop him from holding a press conference (and having cable news air them) every time he has a tweetable thought? What? How would that work? I can just imagine that.

Does his "tweetable thoughts" have less reach or the same? I don't know how you can argue that his reach is undiminished, but here we are.

Can you rephrase this as a coherent thought

[spike]

disinformation online is a huge issue. making an example of the highest profile offender seems like a solid start to getting it in check.

Who's making the example? What authority do you trust to decide for you what you are allowed to hear? Mark Zuckerberg?

Disinformation online is a bigger threat than tech censorship? I couldn't possibly disagree more.

You're not seeing the total picture.

the internet is a cesspool, man.

[BurtReynolds]

It's an attempt to silence him.

Literally every White House press release is at his command. Every single one gets posted online. What’s to stop him from issuing every tweetable thought that way? Why would the public who so respect his direct communication not go there and read them? My understanding is that they’re desperate for his every word.

posted where? how many people will go wherever his press conferences are posted? "What's to stop him from holding a press conference (and having cable news air them) every time he has a tweetable thought?" What? How would that work? I can just imagine that.

Does his "tweetable thoughts" have less reach or the same? I don't know how you can argue that his reach is undiminished, but here we are.

Can you rephrase this as a coherent thought

I was just imagining the hilarity of a Trump tweet-as-press-conference and how that would work, but you said "issuing" so nevermind.

anyway...

Remember blogs? Remember how people used to read them before social media, then after social media happened, the blogosphere died off? It's the same principal here.

I can't believe you are arguing that his reach is the same now as last week.

[Mickey]

Yeah the weird thing about Trump trying to access twitter through other accounts is that he's the fucking POTUS. If he wants to get a message out, just hold a press conference.

That gets filtered though. He can't go directly to the people.

"No one argues with me because my ideas are too smart"

[BurtReynolds]

Hey peanut gallery, do you agree with this guy? I feel like I'm in crazy town.

[BurtReynolds]

The silence is deafening.

[McParadigm]

We blocked their accounts in the name of the new world order

[Birds in Hell]

If it helps, I'm also very uncomfortable with Trump being banned from Twitter, and even more so with the coordinated nature of preventing him from posting anywhere, etc.

I feel as though I haven't fully thought that discomfort through, however.

[washing machine]

Hey spenno

[BurtReynolds]

ok ok ok Let's take this one step at a time...

2 things:

POINT 1 (FILTERING):

- A tweet is less filtered than a press conference or some other statement by the time it reaches the end consumer (the average person). By "less filtered", I mean that doesn't have to go through as many hands before it reaches the end. It isn't altered or added to or subtracted from. It can be later of course, but the original is present in its pure form on Twitter (or was.) Anyone can see exactly what he said at any time.
- The original tweet isn't bookended by commentary (unless you count comments I guess). A talking head isn't talking over it. He isn't talking before it. Or after it. It isn't mentioned in the middle of a news article or editorial. It isn't clipped or chopped. His words are presented directly, as it was created by the source.
- With a tweet, Trump has nearly complete control over the presentation. It's his words, unedited, typed with his own hand and presented directly to anyone with an internet connection.
- Ok yes, Twitter is a middle man of sorts, but a pretty unobtrusive one compared to the multiple parties a press statement has to FILTER through to reach the general public.

POINT 2 (REACH): He has more reach on social media than without it.

- There are 330m monthly active users and 145 million daily users on Twitter alone. There are 3.5 billion social media users worldwide (44%-53% of the world population.) 90% of millennials, 77% of Gen X, and 48% of boomers use social media. All of these people are of voting age. I've seen stats that say the average user spends 3 hours per day on social media (In any case, it's probably way more than it should be.)
- Social media accounts for about half of all internet traffic.
- Sorry strat, but social media is really big. You can think I'm a crazy ole cave man all you'd like, but there are a lot of Burts out there. You are going to have to accept this.
- A tweet is (somewhat) permanent, available at any time of the day, available weeks later. This means that it can be seen by anyone at their convenience. They don't have to watch TV at certain times.
- McP seems to think that I'm arguing that tens of millions of people are sitting at home desperately hitting refresh on their Twitter feeds waiting desperately for a Trump tweet. I'm arguing the opposite. Most people range from ambivalent to mildly interested. Some will only check social media once a day or so. Social media's power is in reaching those people.
- Tweets are taylor-made to be shared. They are taylor-made to rapidly propagate across the internet. Other sites have share buttons specifically for this purpose. They can be easily imbedded on any website. Granted, this is not an unfiltered process, but a tweet reaches far beyond Twitter. It reaches other social media sites, independent sites, cable news, and newspapers.
- These social media sites have algorithms that privilege certain newsworthy or attention grabbing posts at the top of people's feeds. The president is of course newsworthy and attention-grabbing. He drives traffic. He is seen more than most. Now he isn't.


Thank you for coming to my TED talk.

P.S. Also keep in mind that a lot of prominent voices who would share Trump news were also removed yesterday, which lowers both his TV and internet clout even further.

[tragabigzanda]

One of the weirder things I’ve seen as a result of the trump presidency is BurtReynolds sucking Jack Dorsey’s dick.

[BurtReynolds]

One of the weirder things I’ve seen as a result of the trump presidency is BurtReynolds sucking Jack Dorsey’s dick.

Now you're just trying to drive me into the loony bin.

[E.H. Ruddock]

- The original tweet isn't bookended by commentary (unless you count comments I guess).

Isn't that what commentary is? Comments?

[96583UP]

i've read the last 6 pages, mostly and my primary takeaway is that this new concept of calling someone 'Fredo' is just fucking hilarious

[BurtReynolds]

i've read the last 6 pages, mostly and my primary takeaway is that this new concept of calling someone 'Fredo' is just fucking hilarious

And I'm the one that started it! I literally called myself that!

[96583UP]

also - we need a benevolent dictator to censor people with millions of followers who promote lies and violence

it's not ideal

but it's necessary from a practical perspective

maybe trump being banned will encourage other twitter bannings of influential assholes

[96583UP]

i've read the last 6 pages, mostly and my primary takeaway is that this new concept of calling someone 'Fredo' is just fucking hilarious

And I'm the one that started it! I literally called myself that!

Fredo has a fuckin killer mustache

[knee tunes]

i've read the last 6 pages, mostly and my primary takeaway is that this new concept of calling someone 'Fredo' is just fucking hilarious

And I'm the one that started it! I literally called myself that!

Fredo has a fuckin killer mustache

That's Franco American

[96583UP]

i've read the last 6 pages, mostly and my primary takeaway is that this new concept of calling someone 'Fredo' is just fucking hilarious

And I'm the one that started it! I literally called myself that!

Fredo has a fuckin killer mustache

That's Franco American

his gigantic forehead is also hilarious

[knee tunes]

i've read the last 6 pages, mostly and my primary takeaway is that this new concept of calling someone 'Fredo' is just fucking hilarious

And I'm the one that started it! I literally called myself that!

Fredo has a fuckin killer mustache

That's Franco American

his gigantic forehead is also hilarious

*Chef's cap