愛污传媒

Skip to main content

Musk says Twitter has suspended rapper Ye over swastika post

Share

Twitter has suspended rapper Ye after he tweeted a picture of a swastika merged with the Star of David.

It is the second time this year that Ye has been suspended from the platform over antisemitic posts.

Twitter CEO Elon Musk confirmed the suspension by replying to Ye's post of an unflattering photo of Musk. Ye called it his "final tweet."

"I tried my best. Despite that, he again violated our rule against incitement to violence. Account will be suspended," Musk .

Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, has made a series of antisemitic comments in recent weeks. On Thursday, Ye praised Hitler in an interview with conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.

Ye's remarks have led to his suspension from social media platforms, his talent agency dropping him and companies like Adidas cutting ties with him. The sportswear manufacturer has also launched an investigation into his conduct.

Ye was suspended from Twitter in early October after saying in a post that he was going to go "death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE." His account was reinstated by the end of the month just as Musk took control of the company, but the billionaire tweeted that "Ye's account was restored by Twitter before the acquisition. They did not consult with or inform me."

Twitter's longtime practice before Musk took over was to suspend offending users temporarily and to escalate that to a permanent ban only if they kept breaking the rules. Musk has said he wants to avoid permanent bans and that speech should be allowed so long as it doesn't break the law in the countries where Twitter operates.

But Musk is now under pressure to clean up Twitter after changes he made following his purchase of the platform resulted in what watchdog groups say is a rise in racist, antisemitic and other toxic speech.

A report published Friday by the Anti-Defamation League said Musk's moves have empowered extremists on the platform. The ADL said that in its role as a "trusted flagger" of antisemitic tweets, it reported two batches to the company on Nov. 2 鈥 just days after Musk took over 鈥 and again on Nov. 17 after he had changed its policies and slashed Twitter's workforce.

"In two weeks, Twitter went from taking action on 60% of antisemitic tweets to taking action on only 30%," the group said.

ADL said it has noted both more antisemitic content and less moderation of antisemitic posts, a situation it says is likely to grow worse because of the cuts to Twitter's content-moderation staff.

A top European Union official warned Musk this week that Twitter needs to do a lot more to protect users from hate speech, misinformation and other harmful content ahead of tough new rules requiring tech companies to better police their platforms, under threat of big fines or even a ban in the 27-nation bloc.

Ye's Twitter ouster came after his bid to buy the right wing-leaning social media site Parler was called off. Ye had offered Parler in October, but Parlement Technologies, which owns Parler, said Thursday that the deal had fallen through.

"This decision was made in the interest of both parties in mid-November," Parlement Technologies said.

Parler is a small platform in the emerging space of right-leaning, far-right and libertarian social apps that promise little to no content moderation to weed out hate speech, racism and misinformation, among other objectionable content. None of the sites have come close to reaching mainstream status.

The rapper now appears to have migrated to another right-wing platform, former U.S. president Donald Trump's Truth Social, where an account under Ye's name posted about Musk on Friday. A representative for Truth Social didn't respond to a request for comment but Ye's profile carried a red check mark "reserved for well known, highly searched VIPs" to show the account is genuine.

CTVNews.ca Top Stories

BREAKING

BREAKING

Four people are dead and another is in hospital following a fiery crash in downtown Toronto that happened overnight on Lake Shore Boulevard.

The president and CEO of New Brunswick-based Covered Bridge Potato Chips is taking an 'extended leave of absence' after being charged with domestic violence this past weekend.

BREAKING

BREAKING

Quebec鈥檚 Bureau of Independent Investigations (BEI) is investigating after police in Gatineau, Que. shot and killed a man who allegedly stabbed an officer during an investigation.

Local Spotlight

He is a familiar face to residents of a neighbourhood just west of Roncesvalles Avenue.

A meteor lit up our region's sky last night 鈥 with a large fireball shooting across the horizon over Lake Erie at around 7:00 p.m.

Residents of Ottawa's Rideauview neighbourhood say an aggressive wild turkey has become a problem.

A man who lost his life while trying to rescue people from floodwaters, and a 13-year-old boy who saved his family from a dog attack, are among the Nova Scotians who received a medal for bravery Tuesday.

A newly minted Winnipegger is hoping a world record attempt will help bring awareness for the need for more pump track facilities in the city.

A Springfield, Ont. man is being hailed a 'hero' after running into his burning home to save his two infant children.

Hortense Anglin was the oldest graduate to make her way across the platform at York University's Fall Convocation ceremony this week. At the age of 87, she graduated with an Honours degree in Religious Studies.

Looking for a scare with good intentions this Halloween season? The ghosts and ghouls of Eganville, Ont. invite families to tour the Haunted Walk at Lekbor Manor.

The image of a sleepy Saskatchewan small town with 'not a lot going on' is a well-known anecdote. However, one Saskatchewan company is hoping to change that 鈥 and allow communities both on and off the beaten path to share their stories and advertise what they have to offer.