Hmmmmmm........I need to re-read this, before I comment further......
On Sun, Aug 14, 2016 at 8:39 PM, 'Perplexed' via PoliticalForum < [email protected]> wrote: > > There is no such thing as Pro-Trump free speech as Clinton corporate > allies serve up a carefully curated view of the campaign By Liz Crokin > <http://observer.com/author/liz-crokin/> • 08/12/16 8:30am > > > My dad always told me that conservative candidates have to work twice as > hard as their liberal opponents to win elections because they’re fighting > two opponents: the Democratic Party and the media. > > > The usual suspects from left-leaning major media outlets like *The New > York Times*, MSNBC, CNN and even entertainment networks are doing > everything in their power to ensure a Clinton victory. Look no further than > to Wolf Blitzer mincing > <http://dailycaller.com/2016/07/29/cnns-wolf-blitzer-dances-drinks-wine-after-hillarys-speech-video/> > > <http://dailycaller.com/2016/07/29/cnns-wolf-blitzer-dances-drinks-wine-after-hillarys-speech-video/>around > and drinking wine at the Democratic convention, celebrating Hillary’s > nomination. But the propaganda skewing this election runs much deeper than > just the media: our iPhones, iPads, social media networks, Google and even > video games are all in the tank for Hillary Clinton—and it’s chilling. > > > I began looking into how strong the bias and censorship runs in these > forums after I did an interview on the pro-Trump podcast, MAGAPod > <http://www.magapod.com/>. The show’s host, Mark Hammond, was > disappointed Apple wouldn’t run his show without an “explicit” warning. > Hammond’s podcast didn’t contain content that would be deemed explicit > under Apple’s policy, and most other shows in the News & Politics category > aren’t labeled as such. > > > On June 18, Hammond talked to Sandra, a representative from Apple. She > explained that, since the description of his show is pro-Trump, his show is > explicit in nature—because the subject matter is Donald Trump. So, an Apple > employee concluded the Republican presidential candidate is explicit. > > > iTunes has dozens of podcasts discussing Osama Bin Laden and Adolf > Hitler—none of which is marked explicit. I encouraged Hammond to contact > Apple again, via email to their podcast support team. Within 48 hours he > received a response from “Tim,” who informed Hammond that his podcast would > be updated to “clean” within 24 hours. > > > Further digging on Apple revealed more evidence that the computer giant is > feeding users pro-Hillary and anti-Trump propaganda. > > > Over the past year, Apple twice refused to publish > <http://www.breitbart.com/tech/2016/07/25/satirical-clinton-email-game-deemed-offensive-rejected-by-app-store/> > a satirical Clinton Emailgate game, “Capitol HillAwry,” claiming it was > “offensive” and “mean spirited” even though the game’s developer, John > Matze, cited in communications with Apple that the game fits the standards > of Apple’s own satire policy. Apple has, however, approved dozens of > games poking fun at Donald Trump > <http://newsbusters.org/blogs/nb/melissa-mullins/2016/07/31/apples-app-store-rejects-anti-hillary-game-sells-nasty-trump>—including > a game called “Dump Trump,” which depicts the GOP nominee as a giant turd. > > > On July 25, Breitbart > <http://www.breitbart.com/tech/2016/07/25/satirical-clinton-email-game-deemed-offensive-rejected-by-app-store/> > exposed > this blatant double standard and favoritism toward Clinton. A few days > after the article was released, Apple caved and published > <https://www.rt.com/usa/354101-hillary-clinton-game-apple-emails/> Capitol > HillAwry, 15 months after Matze’s first attempt to go live. > > > While it’s commendable that Apple resolved both situations, Trump > supporters and conservative users should never have faced such biased > treatment in the first place. > > > Around the same time I was a guest on MAGAPod, a friend complained to me > about how biased his Apple News feed is against Trump. I set up an Apple > News account on my iPhone. > > First step: select an outlet. Fox News. Conservative. But my news feed? > Liberal. > > > And if there are articles above the fold from more right-leaning sites? > They paint Trump in a negative light and Hillary in a positive light. > Of all the channels listed in the Apple News politics section, only two of > the 16 arguably lean right—the rest are reliably left-wing. > > > This has, of course, been pointed out before > <http://www.redstate.com/erick/2015/07/16/apple-inc-has-little-interest-in-conservative-news-voices/>, > and > anyone with an iPhone or iPad can go to Apple News to determine on his or > her own if Apple is pushing leftist propaganda. Apple claims not to endorse > candidates, but their actions suggest otherwise, and some of their > executives—including CEO Tim Cook—actively support Clinton’s campaign. > Buzzfeed recently obtained an invitation > <https://www.buzzfeed.com/hamzashaban/apple-ceo-tim-cook-to-host-hillary-clinton-fundraiser?utm_term=.yg9W8Nxy8L#.qe73JN59J7> > to a private $50,000-per-plate fundraiser Cook is hosting for Clinton with > his Apple colleague, Lisa Jackson, at the end of this month. > > > Apple isn’t the only corporation doing Clinton’s bidding. Wikileaks > founder Julian Assange said > <http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/jun/9/google-directly-engaged-clinton-campaign-assange-c/> > Clinton made a deal with Google and that the tech giant is “directly > engaged” in her campaign. It’s been widely reported Clinton hired Eric > Schmidt > <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/julian-assange-google-hillary-clinton_us_5633acc9e4b0631799123a7d>—chairman > of Alphabet, the parent company of Google—to set up a tech company called > The Groundwork. Assange claims this was to ensure Clinton had the > “engineering talent to win the election.” He also pointed out that many > members of Clinton’s staff have worked for Google, and some of her former > employees now work at Google. > > > So it should come as no surprise that there have been multiple reports > accusing Google of manipulating searches to bury negative stories about > Clinton. SourceFed > <http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/jun/9/google-accused-burying-negative-hillary-clinton-st/> > details > how Google alters its auto-complete functions to paint Clinton in a > positive light. > > > For example, when you type “Hillary Clinton cri” into other engines > like Yahoo! or Bing, the most popular autofills are “Hillary Clinton > criminal charges” but in Google it’s “Hillary Clinton crime reform.” Google > denies they changed their algorithm to help Clinton, and insists the > company does not favor any candidate. They also claim their algorithms > don’t show predicted queries that are offensive or disparaging. > > > But Google has gotten into hot water on multiple occasions for connecting > Trump to Adolf Hitler > <http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2016/07/28/google-search-connects-trumps-book-to-hitlers-mein-kampf.html>. > In June, when users searched “when Hitler was born” it generated the > expected information on Hitler but also an image of Trump. In July, > searches for Trump’s book, *Crippled America > <https://www.amazon.com/dp/B015ND2B0K/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1#navbar>,* > returned images > of Adolf Hitler’s manifesto *Mein Kampf*. Google has since fixed both—but > again, why do these issues always conveniently disparage Trump and help > Clinton? > > > Twitter is another culprit. The company has gotten a lot of slack for > banning conservatives and Trump supporters such as Breitbart’s Milo > Yiannopoulos and, most recently, rapper Azealia Banks after she came out in > support of Trump. Twitter has provided vague answers as to why conservative > voices have been banned while they’ve allowed other users to call for the > killing of cops. > > > Just yesterday, Buzzfeed revealed > <https://www.buzzfeed.com/charliewarzel/sources-twitter-ceo-dick-costolo-secretly-censored-abusive-r?utm_term=.cvELNqMnjQ#.dnaKo6Np9P> > that the social media giant’s top executive personally protected the > President from seeing critical messages last year. “In 2015, then-Twitter > CEO Dick Costolo secretly ordered employees to filter out abusive and > hateful replies to President Barack Obama.” > > > This year, Twitter isn’t just banning conservatives—the platform > also changed its algorithms to promote Clinton while giving > negative exposure to Trump. > > > The founders of some of the most popular pro-Trump Twitter > handles—including @USAforTrump2016 and @WeNeedTrump—insist Twitter is > censoring their content. They’ve pointed out that Twitter changes trending > hashtags associated with negative tweets about Clinton (which has been > reported > before > <http://www.vocativ.com/290811/twitter-accused-of-censoring-anti-hillary-hashtag/>). > On August 4, shortly after the hashtag “HillaryAccomplishment” began > trending, it was taken over by anti-Clinton users, who used it to mention > Benghazi or Emailgate. Eric Spracklen, @USAforTrump2016 founder, noticed > the hashtag was quickly changed—pluralized to #HillarysAccomplishments. > > > “They take away the hashtag that has negative tweets for Clinton and > replace it with something that doesn’t so the average person doesn’t see > what was really trending,” Spracklen said. “This happens every day.” > > > Jack Murphy, founder of @WeNeedTrump, says followers complain they often > aren’t able to retweet his pro-Trump tweets. > > > Instagram has also banned accounts that depict Clinton in a negative > light. In June, a conservative comedy group called Toughen Up America was > banned > <http://www.breitbart.com/tech/2016/06/20/instagram-censors-conservative-comedy-group> > with no warning or explanation. Last week, the popular Australian-based > graffiti artist, Lushsux, was banned from Instagram after he posted photos > of a bikini-clad Clinton mural he painted. > > > “I don’t want to sound like a conspiracy theorist with a tin foil hat, but > the timing of the Hillary Clinton mural posting and the deletion that > ensued can’t just be a coincidence,” he told the Daily Mail Australia > <http://www.breitbart.com/tech/2016/06/20/instagram-censors-conservative-comedy-group>. > Lushsux has posted photos of way more graphic murals, including a topless > Melania Trump and a naked Donald with his package in full sight. These > images did not trigger any censorship from Instagram. > > > Facebook has a long history of shutting down pages and blocking > <http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2016/05/26/10-times-facebook-censored-conservatives.html> > conservative > users while promoting progressive voices like Black Lives Matter activists. > The problem became so transparent that Sen. John Thune sent a letter > <http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/11/technology/facebook-thune-conservative.html?_r=0> > to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg asking him to explain their practices. > > > Facebook denies it discriminates against “any sources of ideological > origin” and Zuckerberg did meet with conservatives > <http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2016/05/18/conservatives-stress-thought-diversity-facebook/84550870/> > in an attempt to resolve this issue. While some walked away from the > meeting encouraged that Zuckerberg wants to repair their relationship, > other prominent conservatives rejected the invitation as a publicity stunt. > It should be noted that Facebook employees have donated more to Clinton > <http://www.breitbart.com/tech/2016/05/10/hillary-clinton-has-received-the-most-donations-from-facebook-employees/> > than to any other candidate. > > > Many conservatives have come to expect this kind of thing from the > mainstream media. CNN, which paints itself as the centrist antidote to > right-leaning Fox News and left-leaning MSNBC, has actually been among the > most disingenuous offenders during this cycle, fully earning its derisive > nickname “Clinton News Network.” For example, as NewsBusters pointed out > <http://www.newsbusters.org/blogs/nb/matthew-balan/2016/08/03/cnns-new-day-airs-nearly-200-times-more-coverage-trump-iran> > for just one day, “CNN set aside nearly half of its air time on > Wednesday’s *New Day* to various recent controversies involving the Trump > campaign — 1 hour, 24 minutes, and 18 seconds over three hours. By > contrast, the program clearly didn’t think much of the *Wall Street > Journal*‘s revelation > <http://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-sent-cash-to-iran-as-americans-were-freed-1470181874> > that the Obama administration secretly airlifted $400 million in cash to > Iran. John Berman gave a 27-second news brief to the report, but didn’t > mention that the payment was sent on “an unmarked cargo plane.” *New Day*, > therefore, devoted over 187 times more coverage to Trump than to the > millions to Iran.” > > > Another favored CNN trick is to present a “balanced” panel comprised of > two Republicans, two Democrats and a host, as they did on the afternoon of > July 29, just to name one instance of a hundred. However, the Republican > side always features one Trump supporter and one “Never Trump” Republican, > with the host grilling the Trump Supporter—often a beleaguered Jeffrey > Lord—in what amounts to a 4-on-1. So much for balance. > > > Right now, CNN has a story > <http://www.cnn.com/2016/08/10/politics/donald-trump-republican-opposition/> > on its site called “Which Republicans oppose Trump and why?” There’s no > corresponding story about Democrats who oppose Clinton, even though her > underdog challenger in the primary lasted far longer and received far more > votes than any of Trump’s Republican challengers. > > > No Republican willing to criticize Trump is too insignificant to merit > coverage on CNN. When a minor Christie staffer announced on her personal > Facebook that she’d be backing Hillary, she somehow merited a 1200 word > story > <http://www.cnn.com/2016/08/02/politics/maria-comella-hillary-clinton-donald-trump/> > on CNN’s website and euphoric coverage on the air by Brooke Baldwin for > “splitting with her party.” > > > So that’s the traditional media. But this new strand, where one cannot > even search for alternative viewpoints amid technology companies who stand > to benefit from the free-trade policies and eased immigration regulations > of a Clinton presidency, represents a dangerous sea change. There’s > absolutely no question the digital forums we use every day are censoring > conservatives and favoring Clinton. You can’t simply scroll through photos > on Instagram, look for a video game in the App Store or do a quick Google > search without being fed anti-Trump and pro-Clinton propaganda. > > > These companies are engaging in activity that can quickly lead down a very > dangerous slippery slope and this should concern all freedom-loving > Americans—not just conservatives. If you don’t know when the election is, > no problem! Just Google it and see for yourself what comes up… > > > [image: Google] > > Google, before adjustments were made to the ‘when is the election’ search. > (Screenshot: > Google) > > > *Disclosure: Donald Trump is the father-in-law of Jared Kushner, the > publisher of Observer Media.* > > *Liz Crokin <https://www.facebook.com/liz.rubyghostfire> is an > award-winning author, journalist, political pundit and an advocate for sex > crime victims. Her work has appeared in the RedEye Edition of the Chicago > Tribune, the Chicago Sun-Times: Splash, Townhall, Elite Daily, Marie Claire > and Us Weekly. Follower her on Twitter <https://twitter.com/lizcrokin> and > Instagram <https://www.instagram.com/lizcrokin/> @LizCrokin.* > > *-------------* > > > The picture of Hillary coming up on the Iphone when "when is the election > is asked shows just how stupid these companies think people are*. *I'd > love to be a fly on the wall of one of their meetings; can you even imagine > the conversations about how stupid people are, so they can easily get away > with doing something this stupid? Unbelievable. > > > -- > -- > Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. > For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum > > * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ > * It's active and moderated. 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