During COVID-19, LBRY claims that Apple forced it to censor certain terms. In response to Elon Musk’s complaint about Apple’s declining Twitter advertising, the crypto company LBRY discussed its own issues with Apple and censorship.
During the COVID-19 outbreak, the blockchain-based file-sharing and payment network LBRY has claimed that Apple, the tech giant, forced it to filter out certain search terms in apparent opposition to free speech.
LBRY claims that it was asked to censor anything related to COVID-19, particularly vaccines and the virus’s human origins, in a Twitter post on Nov. 28 or risk having its apps removed from the Apple store.
“We had to create a list of more than 20 terms for which we would only display results on Apple devices. “Our apps would not be allowed in the store if we did not filter the terms,” the crypto company claimed.
LBRY is a decentralized platform for sharing content that gives creators of all kinds, including writers, filmmakers, and artists, complete creative and financial control over their work. One of its most well-known apps is the Odyssey video-sharing website; however, it is unknown whether this app was involved in the alleged censorship.
The blockchain company made the disclosure in response to Elon Musk’s post, in which Musk stated that Apple had “mostly stopped” advertising on Twitter due to concerns about the content of the social media platforms. This prompted LBRY to share its experience working with Apple during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Additionally, LBRY asserts that Apple “Rejected” videos in which some of its users included images of “Pepe the Frog.”
Pepe the Frog is a 2005 Internet meme depicting a green anthropomorphic frog that has since been adopted by Hong Kong protest groups and utilized in political-based ideology.
“Apple may make good products, but they have been opposed to free speech for some time,” the crypto company stated.
On Twitter, censorship-related debates have persisted in the interim.
Since Musk took over Twitter on Oct. 28, he has been teasing the release of the “Twitter Files,” which he claims to be evidence of a concerted effort by the previous administration to restrict free speech on the platform.
Some users have turned to decentralized social networks as an alternative because of Musk’s acquisition of Twitter and subsequent plans for the platform.
A new Bitcoin-powered Bluesky Social app was recently unveiled by Jack Dorsey, co-founder and former CEO of Twitter, as part of a decentralized alternative to Twitter.
The initiative, which Dorsey first announced three years ago and aimed to give users control over their data and the ability to move it between platforms without permission, was made public on October 18.
