X, formerly known as Twitter, has announced plans to recruit a slew of far-left fact checkers to censor “election misinformation” ahead of the 2024 presidential election. X CEO Linda Yaccarino says she is seeking to ramp up efforts to purge the platform of non-mainstream views by hiring disinformation specialists who will be tasked with censoring claims of “election rigging” by Trump supporters.
Yaccarino recently came under fire after she declared that “free speech is no longer acceptable on X” and boasted that Elon Musk no longer has editorial control over his own platform.
Yaccarino, a World Economic Forum (WEF) member and former NBC executive, announced last week that she will begin ramping up the “shadowbanning” of accounts deemed to be pushing “misinformation” and “hate speech”.
The move to hire fact-checkers has sparked yet more concern among free speech advocates, especially after Musk previously promised users he would uphold values of free speech on the platform.
Thenationalpulse.com reports: Critics, including Mike Benz from the Foundation For Freedom Online, have raised the issue of possible covert censorship channels and an increased threat to online freedom if these positions are filled.
The job postings have been promoted through DisinfoDocket.com, a site affiliated with “anti-disinformation” groups with ties to federal cybersecurity agencies. These developments raise questions about the true intentions behind the creation of these positions and how they align with the concept of free speech.
The preference for candidates proficient in European languages suggests that the impact will extend beyond localized concerns.