Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and other Democrats criticized Twitter CEO Elon Musk on Thursday night for suspending a number of prominent journalists from the platform.
In a tweet, Ocasio-Cortez wrote that Musk is a public figure that is both controversial and powerful. She added that feeling unsafe is something she can understand but that does not mean you should abuse your power and start banning journalists from the platform. She then added, “Take a beat and lay off the proto-fascism.”
Several technology reporters running for The New York Times, The Washington Post, and CNN, have had their Twitter accounts suspended after Thursday night when they decided to report on Musk’s dispute with the creator of the @elonjet account.
Jack Sweeney, the Twitter account creator, has been tracking the movement of the billionaire’s private jet and was as a result suspended on Wednesday. Musk then went ahead and claimed many journalists have been “doxxing” him in the way they covered the story which led to their suspension.
He added that criticizing him all day long is fine, but “doxxing” his real-time location is not something that is acceptable by journalists or anyone else as it can endanger him and his family. He also continued to say that the same “doxxing” rules apply to everyone on the platform.