First the Saudis infiltrated Twitter. Now they're the second largest owner after funding Musk's Twitter purchase. Racist and anti-semitic tweets surge...
What's behind the Saudi investment in Twitter? How have the Saudis used personal data from Twitter in the past to silence critics? What does the $2 billion Saudi investment in Jared Kushner get them? What does this have to do with the price of gas and inflation? Follow the money.
- Prince Alwaleed bin Talal is one of the richest Middle East investors... It also raises questions about how much influence Alwaleed or Prince Mohammed may wield in their new relationship with Musk. - The Guardian
- Two Former Twitter Employees and a Saudi National Charged as Acting as Illegal Agents of Saudi Arabia. - U.S. Dept. of Justice
- Twitter allows MBS aide implicated in spying plot to keep verified account - The Guardian
Follow the money
Saudi Crown Prince Is Held Responsible for Khashoggi Killing in U.S. Report. He approved the assassination of the Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018, according to an intelligence report about the brutal killing... the dismemberment of his body with a bone saw after Saudi officials lured him to their consulate in Istanbul. - NY Times
" 'A direct trail of blood drops' leads from a Twitter hack to Jamal Khashoggi's murder" - Yahoo News
Jared Kushner secured a $2 billion investment from a fund led by the Saudi crown prince, a close ally during the Trump administration, despite objections from the fund’s advisers about the merits of the deal. Ethics experts say that such a deal creates the appearance of potential payback for Mr. Kushner’s actions in the White House — or of a bid for future favor if Mr. Trump seeks and wins another presidential term in 2024. - NY Times
Two Former Twitter Employees and a Saudi National Charged as Acting as Illegal Agents of Saudi Arabia. - Dept. of Justice
Twitter Allows Saudi Official to Keep Verified Account Despite Spy Claims. - Daily Beast
Saudis and Russians jack up gas prices to help Republicans
Republicans are surely excited about the news that a group of oil-producing countries led by Saudi Arabia and Russia will slash oil production by 2 million barrels per day. In addition to threatening the global economy, it also could mean the specter of higher energy prices heading into the midterm elections, bolstering GOP attacks at a time when their potency - Washington Post
Part of the pain you feel at the gas pump helps the Saudis make more money. More money to help fund Twitter as is spreads hate and racism. It's business, not personal as the GodFather would say.
Network Contagion Research Institute
The Network Contagion Research Institute (NCRI) identifies and forecasts cyber-social threats targeting individuals, organizations, and communities. The NCRI is committed to empowering partners to become proactive in protecting themselves against false narratives that create rifts of distrust that impact institutions, capital markets, public health, and safety. - NCRI
Stop Hate For Profit
"Within 24 hours of Musk taking ownership, the platform was inundated with hate and disinformation," read an open letter to brands including Amazon, HBO, and Apple sent by the coalition, citing reports that use of N-word on Twitter jumped by almost 500% after Musk's takeover and Musk's own recent tweets sharing conspiracy theories about the attack on Paul Pelosi. - Stop Hate For Profit.
Major Civil Rights organizations including the NAACP and the Anti-Defamation League are calling on advertisers to boycott Twitter. In a statement released Friday afternoon, NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson wrote that “until [actions] are taken to make Twitter a safe space, corporations cannot in good conscience put their money behind Twitter.” Johnson affirmed that “Twitter must earn its advertisers by creating a platform that safeguards our democracy and rids itself of any account that spews hate and misinformation.” - Rolling Stone
Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM)
Industry collaboration to improve digital safety GARM is the Global Alliance for Responsible Media, a cross-industry initiative established by the World Federation of Advertisers.
- Address the challenge of harmful content on digital media platforms and its monetization via advertising.
- Address the challenge of harmful content on digital media platforms and its monetization via advertising.
- Acts as the forum for the creation of solutions that will improve online safety for both consumers and advertisers.
- Get the digital media ecosystem working together on the shared priorities that will lead to the removal of harmful content from advertiser-supported social media.
TakeAway: Follow the money to see how billionaires manipulate the media to get what they want and silence critics.
Deepak
DemLabs
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