INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Another tech platform has closed the door on Infowars& Alex Jones .Mail messaging platform MailChimp first confirmed the move in a statement
to United States media watchdog Media Matterswhich said the accounts had been closed for &hateful conduct.& A MailChimp spokeswoman also
confirmed it to TechCrunch via email.
In a statement MailChimp said it had terminated Infowars& and Jones& accounts for ToS violations —
adding that while it doesn''t usually comment on individual account closures it was making an exception in this case.
We don''t allow people
to use our platform to disseminate hateful content,& it wrote, adding: &We take our responsibility to our customers and employees seriously
The decision to terminate this account was thoughtfully considered and is in line with our company values.
There has been something of a
domino effect among tech companies in recent weeks over what to do about Jones/Infowars, with Facebook, Apple and Google pulling content or
shuttering Jones& channels over ToS violations
Spotify, YouPorn and even Pinteresthave also pulled his content for the same reasons.Although Twitter has not — saying Jones has not
violated its rules.
Jones, a notorious conspiracy theorist, has peddled anti-truths on his own website for nearly two decades, but has
raised his profile and gained greater exposure by using the reach of mainstream tech platforms and tools — enabling him to rabble rouse
beyond a niche audience.
As well as spreading toxic disinformation on mainstream social networks, including targeting the victims of the
Sandy Hook Elementary school shooting by falsely claiming the massacre was an elaborate hoax, Media Matters notes that Jones has regularly
encouraged violence — expounding an impending second United States civil war narrative in which he discusses killing minorities.
Jones is
spinning the recent tech platform bans as a ‘censorship war& on him, even as hosting companies continue to provide a platform on the
internet for his website — where he continues to peddle his BS for anyone who wants to listen.
