Sat Mar 23, 2024 11:33 pm by globalturbo
YouTube Alternative and Free Speech Champion Rumble Refuses France’s Request to Pull Russian News Sources
By Kathleen J. Anderson
November 2, 2022
Like most living, breathing people on this Earth with a smartphone, I have long enjoyed access to YouTube for various content. From funny videos and political commentary to how-to videos, and upcoming movie previews, it has been this family’s go-to when a simple Google search won’t do.
However, when one of my favorite YouTube channels was censored and opted to move to its competitor Rumble, I found I watch YouTube less and less.
Here’s a good example of why I find myself more and more on Rumble: the free speech champions refused to bend the knee to the French government’s demands for censorship.
Rumble’s very public response to the French leadership has now placed it in Boss Status along with the likes of Elon Musk and Governor Ron DeSantis.
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3:23 PM · Nov 1, 2022
That Had To Hurt
There is a general expectation that media and technology organizations do not publish or broadcast Russian-backed media under the argument that to do so is to “support” and elevate Russian propaganda and misinformation.Rumble explained in an epic Tweet that:
Unlike its Big Tech competitors like YouTube and Facebook, Rumble has decided not to acquiesce to France’s request, stating simply:“Recently, the French government demanded that we remove certain Russian news sources from Rumble.”
While Rumble argues the legality with the French government over their request, they have decided to “disable access to Rumble for users in France,” and here comes the best part:“Users with unpopular views are free to access our platform on the same terms as our millions of other users.”
Ouch! It’s okay, President Macron; get yourself a cafe au lait and croissant. You’ll start to feel better, I promise.“This decision will not have a material effect on our business, as France represents less than one percent of our users.”
Familiar Fear
In many ways, the fear the left has of Rumble is the same fear they have of Elon Musk and his takeover of Twitter. Rumble Chief Executive Chris Pavlovski and new Twitter owner Elon Musk have similar thought processes of what their platforms should and shouldn’t allow.The mission of Rumble is “to protect a free and open internet,” and the CEO has often claimed that his platform is “immune to cancel culture.”
So it’s no wonder the video content platform has increased interest for viewers of all stripes who are tired of Big Government and Big Tech deciding what they can and can’t consume from the internet.
As Mr. Pavlovski has said, and which also explains their refusal to take down Russian media sites:
That’s quite a different stance towards content moderation than Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube, which have actively worked with the Department of Homeland Security and FBI to decide what content is allowed and what isn’t.“We are a movement that does not stifle, censor, or punish creativity.”
Broadening Its Palette
If you read any article from any source, Rumble will likely be described as a haven for right-wing extremists and “Qanon” conspiracy theorists. While Mr. Pavlovski claims he never intended for the site to be a conservative platform, there seem to be many conservatives.Former President Donald Trump has been a supporter; Dan Bongino is very active on the site. He is often viewed as the new Rush Limbaugh, and One America News broadcasts on Rumble. In full disclosure, so do we at The Political Insider.
This year Rumble has been clocking about 44 million monthly visitors, surpassing other conservative media like Breitbart, Newsmax, and The Daily Wire. Mr. Pavlovski claims:
And there’s nothing wrong with that. In fact, that should be the standard in a country where free speech is protected. That’s the whole point.“There is no ideology here. If anything, we’re just neutral.”
About a month ago, an individual not known as a conservative but more thought of as progressive in his beliefs migrated from YouTube to Rumble; Russell Brand.
For those unfamiliar, Russell Brand is an actor, spiritualist, and recovering addict who opines on various political and social issues, from healthcare, political corruption, marriage equality, and progressive criminal justice reform.
He’s hardly the poster child for right-wing ultra-MAGA types, yet he’s on Rumble. But the question is, why?
Double Standard
Russell Brand, who still has a footprint on YouTube, had stated on one of his YouTube broadcasts that the National Institution of Health had added Ivermectin as COVID treatment when they were “trialing” the drug for treatment. Once Mr. Brand was aware of his accidental error, he issued a correction and an apology.However, that was not enough for the YouTube watchdogs who issued him his, as he quoted, “one-lifetime warning.” Interestingly, Mr. Brand pointed out that MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow had said in a YouTube video that was still on the site:
Pointing out that we all know that isn’t true, he asks a great question that we all know the answer to:“The virus stops with every vaccination.”
In his announcement that he would start broadcasting on Rumble, Mr. Brand said:“Is there one standard for independent channels…and another for the mainstream media?”
“I support and love all of you. If you love Donald Trump, I love you. If you love Joe Biden, I love you. I want us to create new systems together and I don’t believe these institutionalized systems in the financial, government, or media worlds are ever going to serve ordinary people. I believe we’re at a point of crisis, and things need to radically change, fast. And I believe we’ll be able to communicate our message more freely on Rumble.”
MORE HERE: https://thepoliticalinsider.com/youtube-alternative-and-free-speech-champion-rumble-refuses-frances-request-to-pull-russian-news-sources/?utm_campaign=TPI11022022BR1&utm_source=criticalimpact&utm_medium=email&source=TPICI
