President Donald Trump has issued a stout defense of a disproved use of a malaria drug as a treatment for the coronavirus, hours after social media companies moved to take down videos promoting its use as potentially harmful misinformation.
The president's tone shifted Tuesday from the more measured approach he’s displayed about the virus in recent days as he promoted hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus.
He also amplified criticism of Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert.
Scientific studies have shown hydroxychloroquine can do more harm than good when used to treat symptoms of COVID-19.
Trump, Twitter feud raises questions about censorship, free speech
The ongoing feud between Twitter and President Donald Trump continues raising questions about censorship and free speech.
In June, Twitter removed a tribute video to George Floyd that the president tweeted from his campaign account. Twitter cited copyright complaints. The video is still on YouTube and Facebook.
Before that, Twitter fact-checked and hid some of the president's tweets about mail-in voting fraud and another tweet regarding "looting and shooting," saying it was glorifying violence.
Meanwhile, the same post on the president's Facebook account was not removed.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has maintained that though the company removes posts that incite violence, the president's post did not violate that policy. That decision led to the resignation of a former Facebook software engineer.
