Trump Slams Twitter, Says 'Trending' Is Fake Because 'Biden Corruption' Is Biggest Story
President Donald Trump on Wednesday stepped up his Twitter rants, complaining about how Democratic nominee Joe Biden's "corruption" isn’t trending on Twitter. The posting was both an attack on Biden and the social media giant, which at times has been at odds with Trump.
“Why isn’t Twitter trending Biden corruption? It’s the biggest, and most credible, story anywhere in the world. Fake Trending!!!” Trump posted on Twitter at about 1 p.m. ET.
A word, phrase, or topic that is mentioned at a greater rate than others on Twitter is said to be a "trend." Trending topics become popular either through a concerted effort by users or because of an event that prompts people to talk about a specific topic. Twitter Trends are determined using an algorithm, not the site itself.
In his tweet, Trump seemed to be referring to a New York Post article which suggested that Biden used his previous position as vice president to enrich his son Hunter. Trump has consistently focused on Hunter Biden’s business dealings in Ukraine and China during the final weeks of the campaign and attacked Biden on his family’s earnings during their last debate.
“He is the vice president of the United States, and his son, his brother and his other brother are getting rich, they’re like a vacuum cleaner,” Trump said during the final presidential debate.
“His son walked out with a billion and a half dollars from China,” Trump added.
However, the bombshell New York Post story was internally criticized by Post employees for its lack of reliable sources and the timing of the article. One Post reporter even refused to put his byline in the story because he had concerns over the article’s credibility, The New York Times reported.
Most notably a Republican-lead investigation found no evidence of improper influence or wrongdoing by the former vice president. Biden also has consistently released his tax return, and through further investigation, there is no evidence, other than the controversial Post report, that Biden took money from a foreign entity.
The attacks on Twitter are not new, as Trump has taken other shots at the social media conglomerate, while Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey and Trump also have a shaky history.
Trump previously accused Twitter of playing “political games" and tampering with his nearly 60 million followers.
Trump also held a private meeting with Dorsey because he was concerned that Twitter deliberately limited or removed followers from his account.
Most recently, Twitter blocked users from sharing a New York Post story, which enraged Trump.
“So terrible that Facebook and Twitter took down the story of ‘Smoking Gun’ emails related to Sleepy Joe Biden and his son, Hunter, in the @NYPost,” Trump tweeted last Wednesday. “It is only the beginning for them. There is nothing worse than a corrupt politician. REPEAL SECTION 230!!!”
Twitter on Friday reversed its controversial decision to block users from sharing the story.
The feud with Twitter comes on the same day as Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, accused Dorsey in person of censoring content through an anti-conservative bias.
Many were quick to respond to the president's subsequent tweet and argued that Biden wasn't gaining traction on Twitter because the Post story is unreliable.
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