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According to reports, President Trump is suffering from COVID-19. Although some people hope that he will recover soon, others publicly tweeted that he would die of the disease. As you might think, this obviously violates Twitter’s rules-the company told Motherboard that it will enforce those rules.
In other words: you can’t tweet that Trump will die of COVID.
Specifically, Twitter told the publication that it will suspend those who wish Trump to die, although it is not clear how often Twitter can do so.
tweets that wish or hope for death, serious bodily harm or fatal disease against *anyone* are not allowed and will need to be removed. this does not automatically mean suspension. https://t.co/lQ8wWGL2y0 https://t.co/P2vGfUeUQf
— Twitter Comms (@TwitterComms) October 2, 2020
Such posts by a Facebook spokesperson on Friday violated the social media giant’s user policies and will be deleted.
To be clear, Facebook is removing death threats or content targeted directly at the president that wishes him death, including comments on his posts or his page – in addition to content tagging him. https://t.co/9eVkO1xXIs
— Liz Bourgeois (@Liz_Shepherd) October 3, 2020
This is an example of a recent response to Trump’s original tweet, which appears to be trying to evade detection:
I hope you make “the sacrifice” too; like other people have.
— One Voice (@OneVoic09474519) October 2, 2020
Twitter responded to this sentiment and said on Saturday morning
tweets that wish or hope for death, serious bodily harm or fatal disease against *anyone* are not allowed and will need to be removed. this does not automatically mean suspension. https://t.co/lQ8wWGL2y0 https://t.co/P2vGfUeUQf
— Twitter Comms (@TwitterComms) October 2, 2020
According to Twitter’s Abusive Behavior policy, the actual rules that apply here are very clear:
Wishing or hoping serious harm on a person or group of people
- We do not tolerate content that wishes, hopes or expresses a desire for death, serious bodily harm or fatal disease against an individual or group of people. This includes, but is not limited to:
- Hoping that someone dies as a result of a serious disease e.g., “I hope you get cancer and die.”
- Wishing for someone to fall victim to a serious accident e.g., “I wish that you would get run over by a car next time you run your mouth.”
- Saying that a group of individuals deserves serious physical injury e.g., “If this group of protesters don’t shut up, they deserve to be shot.”
Trump is currently headed to the Walter Reed Medical Center for testing and treatment.
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