Over the past week or so, it seemsTwitchhas re-dedicated itself to upholding its terms of service and doubling down on moderation practices. For the victims of recent misconduct allegations, this is good thing as long as the streaming services continues these practices, but at the same time, there is some need oftransparency. Particularly pertaining to the case of Dr. Disrespect, who many know has received the allegedly permanent banhammer without so much as a statement to exactly why. On the other hand, Twitch has suspended President Donald Trump complete with an official statement.
First reported by Rod Breslau, a well-known esports Journalist, Donald Trump has been suspended due to “hateful conduct.“Twitchhas not revealed how long this suspension will last, but it’s not a complete ban either. Donald Trump’s channel, then, will likely be back up in a matter of weeks, if not days. Twitch’s official statement reads, “Hateful conduct is not allowed on Twitch. In line with our policies, President Trump’s channel has been issued a temporary suspension from Twitch for comments made on stream.”
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The hateful conduct in question seems to trace back to a re-broadcast of Trump’s kick off rally and comments made in stream about Mexico and those seeking to come to the United States. Another is Trump’s recent Tulsa, Oklahoma rally. TheDonald Trump Twitch channelwas created in October 2019, where it was used to broadcast rallies an campaign events.
Thus far, it does not seem that the Trump administration has made any official comment of the suspension, but Twitch made it clear that politicians were not an except on the platform or to its rules when it formed. Twitch said that politicians, “like anyone else,” must play by the rules and that exceptions were made for them or for “newsworthy content.” This then applies to all politicians on the platform, includingBernie Sandersand others.
Again, in the wake of variousTwitch and YouTuber personalities being outedfor abusing their positions of power, Twitch has reaffirmed its commitment to the integrity of its platform. Suspending the President and banning Dr. Disrespect (one of its biggest faces on the platform) goes to show how seriousTwitchis concerning this.
