See also this related Ask HN thread: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23221447

My favorite (and only) podcasting app. I hope someone who works at Google reads this and flag it internally.

This quote really sums up how ridiculous Google is being:

> What Google is asking of Podcast Addict would be comparable to Google asking a web browser app to remove references to all the websites and social media posts that reference the coronavirus unless the reference comes from an official government entity or public health organization.

At this point: I wish they’d just take a stronger stance and ban everything they don’t like. Just ban the political party they don’t like, ban anything that speaks out against China, just ban it all.

We need to go back to the web, where anybody could install Apache and off they went. Bandwidth is cheap now. BitTorrent exists.

I hope google and twitter and Facebook and all the rest just hurry up with all this.

Some other ridiculous examples of them becoming the ministry of truth:

There was a joke image going around on Facebook saying: “Arizona beaches packed during coronavirus!”. A joke about Arizona not having any beaches because it’s a desert. Facebook censors this and gives you some creepy warning before your allowed to see it.

Or how about: there is a doctor from the university of Minnesota who is running a large scale, international, placebo controlled RCT for a potential covid prophylactic. Twitter is censoring his links to find out more about the study. HE IS A DOCTOR RUNNING A STUDY AT A MAJOR UNI, and twitter is telling him he is misinformation.

It’s all just disgusting and is exactly what a lot of people feared would happen with these companies.

This is the result of out-sourcing juristic work to private companies:

If we treat Android, Window, Twitter, Facebook, as public spaces/goods, then private companies should not have a say in what is allowed/not-allowed on their platforms. This is work for the courts and police to decide and enforce.

If we treat those platforms as private. Then we are playing in s/o's backyard. You are totally at their mercy. They have every right to kick you out if they don't like your face. It's their property. You are a guest.

I think we need constituted digital public spaces and platforms with:

- democratic footing (users are in charge)

- public ownership

- division of power (politicians =!= judges =!= police)

- effective policing

In such a system it would be for independent courts to decide which Apps can be distributed and which not. Those courts would be bound to a constitution/body of law, which applies to all parties a like.

Yes, this will be expensive. Yes, you will have to give up some privacy. But you will be a citizen in a society, and not a stranger playing in a backyard.

Maybe the current platforms can be coerced into a system which approximates the above. But I have my doubts. I hope in 200years people will have figured this out, and will look back to this age as the digital dark ages.

I use Podcast Addict every day, I would even say that is my most used app on android. I work listening to podcasts and PA is the best app for those who like highly customizable software. You can change almost everything.

Its sad that we are in a situation where a company can dictate what we can install on our computers/smartphones. I know we can sideload apps on android, but the majority of users doesn't care about this and just give away its freedom to really own the device in exchange for the easiest way to operate it. And every day we walk towards lesser control of our property and more dependency of those companies.

Another problem is that developers can, without notice, be locked out of their incomes for whatever reason without ways to properly appeal. Those who can, we should consider supporting the developer Xavier Guillemane on Patreon, at least until this situation gets resolved. The amount of work he put on the app, its probably his main source of income and I wouldn't like if he need to abandon the app development due to this. The lowest tier is just $1.

In most of these stories featuring Google abusing their power to remove apps, it's usually a matter of some automated tool gone wrong and the problem is solved a couple of days later. But this time it's different, they are actually asking developers to censor themselves if they are not affiliated with a gov.

This "Not approved by Government or Public Health Organizations" rule seems to apply to all the indie apps except for the apps built by mega corps

- Twitter app asks users to follow Covid-19 related news as the first item in their home screen after login (and has a separate tab for news related to Covid-19 in Search screen).

- Reddit official app asks users to subscribe to /r/Coronavirus (that subreddit is not moderated by any government).

- Quora android app has a banner at the top that is similar (follow Coronavirus Space - all the content in that topic seems to be generated by users).

- YouTube app currently has a featured video related to Covid on my feed from one of their official Spotlight channels.

I'm sure Facebook has something similar to follow news related to Covid.

So there's no consistency of banning non-official speech on Covid-19

Also this is not the first time it happened. Same thing happened to

- A meme generator app because one of the memes contained word Corona (https://www.reddit.com/r/androiddev/comments/fn0wzl/app_with...).

- An RSS reader app for showing news related to Covid (https://www.reddit.com/r/androiddev/comments/ggb3s7/a_week_s...)

- A self improvement app that curates articles (https://reddit.com/r/androiddev/comments/gem317/our_app_was_...)

And in all of these examples, app seems to be restored after talking to someone at Google. Shouldn't that be the first thing done by the Google play team (before suspending the app) instead of dev losing all the installs and revenue for the time the app is suspended?

This is like Google banning the YouTube app from the play store for having videos about covid that aren't from government sources. Insane stuff.

And meanwhile you can use Google to search for "covid19 podcast" and you will get podcast recommendations from non-government sources. This is insane.

I just downloaded google podcast app. Did a search for corona, there are a bunch of results. Google is not a government entity, neither are all the podcasts I could find using it. I hope they will ban their own podcast app pretty soon.

This is my first comment in HN. This is the best productive podcast app ever. The developer is also so helpful with any kind of bugs I reported. I hope this is resolved quickly.

(googler, opinions are my own).

Looks like the appeal was accepted[0]. As well, Google's SVP of Android/Chrome/ChromeOS/PlayStore apologized to the Podcast Addict team[1].

[0] https://twitter.com/PodcastAddict/status/1262541050817605632

[1] https://twitter.com/PodcastAddict/status/1262562502417641473

I think a socially good deed would be to take the original tweet https://twitter.com/PodcastAddict/status/1261671685477941253... and respond to it tweeting @FTC , @kenpaxtontx (who is behind the antimonopoly case). Google will reinstate the app soon, but it should help building the antimonopoly case against this evil machine.

I've never lived in China but this immediately sounds like my (naive) idea of what it must be like: you're only allowed to consume what the government has approved.

I think this is setting a dangerous precedence.

I've been getting away from apps installed from the play store over the years. This is one of the 2 remaining apps I have that I paid for. This is appalling behavior my Google. I can't wait until I can make a real Linux based phone my daily driver.

One of the few paid apps I use extensively. Completely ridiculous given that their own damn podcast app shows everyone the same podcasts.

Not to mention that you can literally post an RSS feed into pretty much every podcast app, it's an open ecosystem. Jesus.

Can Google actually put people with some degree of sensibliity in charge of these decisions? This reminds me of Amazon deleting 1984 from people's Kindles.

This is once again an example for how freedom of speech is becoming more and more controlled by tech companies.

I'm a little worried about this phenomenon. Google is not constructed by journalists. Freedom of speech might not be first priority for Google.

Wow, obviously an oversight. Pretty sure Google does not want search tools to be responsible for the content of the results they surface...

I'm sure Google will suspend their own podcast app too?

> Searching for “coronavirus”or “COVID-19” in Google Podcasts returns podcasts from mainstream media outlets that aren’t endorsed by government entities or public health organizations.

It's a great podcast app which gives the user a ton of freedom and tweaking possibilities, but it's also set and forget.

If this is the first time you hear about it, the safest place to obtain it is the author's Google Drive: https://twitter.com/PodcastAddict/status/1262047866614247425

I've seen so many of these posts saying, Google removes this or that from the store. But until now I did not realize how criminal this is. I know the Dev. Super guy, addresses help questions from thousands of users personally all without the jaded condescending that many maintainers effuse.

Podcast Addict is my favorite podcast app. I have been using it with great satisfaction for years. I hope that gets sorted out quickly.

Another aspect that I don't quite understand: The story claims that Google asks for the app to be published as a new download. And indeed the provided screenshot includes this request (in pretty small print). This makes no sense to me. Why wouldn't Google be satisfied by just changing the existing app? Any ideas what the reason might be?

If you are an end user who would like to avoid getting caught in this situation, you might want to switch to using F-Droid [0] as your primary source of Android software. The selection is more limited, but because everything is open source and distributed outside of Google's walled garden, you can be sure that it won't be arbitrarily removed because of the whims of corporate bureaucracy.

I write this not as a dogmatic free software proponent, either; I have bought apps on the Play Store in the past and would consider doing so if the experience weren't so poor. Dealing with the Play Store has gotten so frustrating (not just due to this issue, but also due to the difficulty of filtering out shovelware and spyware) that I only reach for it as a last resort now.

[0] https://f-droid.org/

This whole industry-wide proactive campaign against misinformation since 2016 has been a disaster. COVID has helped amplified the flaws. The fact this was going to cause an endless amount of false positives negating the wider value proposition should have been obvious since day one.

The worst acts by powerful organizations are almost always done under the guise of 'helping people'. Nobody oppresses you for the sake of oppression. They'll do it under the banner of some good intentions.

Google shows why merely collecting the smartest minds from around the world in one place is not good enough on its own. They need proper leadership and strong values to guide them ... two things Google has long lacked.

Google should be more careful about banning high ranking/rated apps. It looks anti-competitive considering they want more people using Google podcasting app.

I'd like to think this was an accident somewhere down the chain and will be remedied in the morning. I love the app and hope it gets sorted out.

Podcast Addict is a great app. I came across it back when I was playing around with Tasker, and it was such a fun app to create tasks around simply because the developer has exposed so much through Intents. A really positive platform, such a shame to see Google quashing this sort of thing.

What is going on with Google? We had PushBullet being threatened with removal over vague problems just a few days ago.

I don't buy the "evil monopoly" narrative as what does this accomplish for Google?

> In order to get the app restored, Google is asking Guillemane to remove references to COVID-19 and keywords related to COVID-19 from the app.

So is this a metadata issue, or a content issue?

Meanwhile on Google's own podcast search engine https://podcasts.google.com/?q=covid-19. Content management teams are too powerful, this needs to be decided by some kind of content board within the company and not by one person who is leading the content management team within Google Play.

Wow, rather Orwellian. The referenced authorities aren't even in agreement on a lot of basics about covid, and had given false information on key aspects earlier. We can also rightfully draw some conclusions about covid, e.g. looking at data, without needing to be an official authority. Google has smart people, so this makes it all the more distressing.

The only Podcast app worth using.

I hope Google understands the slippery slope they are treading and its implications and consequences.

I don't like this. Podcasts operate on open standards, anyone can launch an RSS feed which can then be played on any app.

Banning this app is like banning web browsers because the allow access "questionable" websites or banning search engines because they index such sites.

I hate how much (dis/mis)information is being spread about COVID-19, but banning an entire podcast app leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

This is exactly why we should stop those megalomaniacs at Google (or other) from taking over Podcasting... We don't want to repeat the same RSS mistake again.

If you respect and enjoy podcasts, don't use google apps.

Edit: my recommendation is AntennaPod. I used to use and love PocketCast until NPR effed it.

>has been suspended on the grounds that some of the podcasts it indexes reference the coronavirus but aren’t approved by government entities or public health organizations.

I don't know. The google should ban itself for they indexes reference the coronavirus but... oh well.

Wow, what a shitty move... Even if this is an automated process, this is still shitty. This app is one of a select few I think work perfectly, as it does exactly what I want it to do. It was also the first app I paid for since it was so good.

Given how much corporations pull the strings in America, how far away are we from China's authoritarian policies, especially as they relate to freedom of speech?

Other posters have rightfully pointed out that the internet is indeed open and free (for the most part), but good luck getting all of your friends to agree to use your new DIY whatsapp clone. Effectively, everyone who doesn't know how to standup their own website is completely at the mercy of these technology companies now.

Furthermore, the channels of communication most people use are now being forced through these tech companies because of recent events. The amount of control sitting under Google at this very moment is sickening.

Seriously think about it. If Google went completely AWOL, how much damage could they do to the world? How much control do they actually have over every Android handset and web user experience? I feel we need to start looking at Google in terms of the worst-case scenario, and then start planning policy around that. There is just too much at stake now.

This is so scary. Any dissent is being deprived of oxygen.

Do Google offer a more censored version of Apple's Podcasts index? My favourite podcast app on iOS (Overcast) uses Apple's index as its source for search/recommendations (though obviously you can add any other feed yourself) and there's heaps and heaps of non-Government approved podcasts on the topic. If you run a Podcasting app on Android, does an index even exist that you can use and remain compliant?

Whatever index they use on podcasts.google.com is full of the same, so I'm leaning toward no. https://podcasts.google.com/?q=covid19&hl=en-GB

It sounds like it is the indexing that's the issue here. Worth noting that if they ever crack down on Podcast apps being able to play non-indexed content they'll wipe out the whole Patreon economy around podcasts, which relies on sharing private feeds with subscribers.

Another thread with a different source here: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23219438

This one seems to make me think that the app itself (or its play store listing) maybe has terms in metadata (to help with searching in the store maybe?)

> to remove references to COVID-19 and keywords related to COVID-19 from the app

Wait. Is this from the app apk or from dynamic content displayed on the app?

If it's the former, it's fair enough, if it's from the latter it's just another SNAFU by Google.

Yet another example of the dangers of handing Google a monopoly on Android app stores. If you control the means of distribution, you can control the content of what gets distributed. It is time for some anti-trust action here!

In the meantime consumers should support other app stores like https://f-droid.org/.

I highly recommend the open source AntennaPod podcast app: https://f-droid.org/en/packages/de.danoeh.antennapod/

Looks like this is finally being sorted out. Tweet from Hiroshi Lockheimer an SVP at Google (which puts him in the top ~12 execs at the company):

Apologies to Podcast Addict fans today. We are still sorting out kinks in our process as we combat Covid misinformation, but this app should not have been removed. Carry on with your podcasts, folks! ️

https://mobile.twitter.com/lockheimer/status/126255336932064...

I love Podcast Addict to the point of signing up for Patreon to support Xavier with a monthly donation. I'm all for doing thoughtful moderation to prevent your system being gamed by malign actors, but Google is clearly in the wrong here, and their implied policy of moderating with as few humans as possible means that a standout app is taking fire for a situation it could not possibly be accountable for.

Timing is suspicious, Google is finally beginning the final phase of Play Music shutdown, which means Google Podcasts will be the new way to access podcasts.

Because it makes a ton of sense to move music to YouTube music, but the podcasts to something entirely different.

They're blindly stumbling around making sure the public will think they're pretty deserving of any and all antitrust hammers than swing their way in the near future.

COVID-19 is the terrorism of this generation. It's the anything goes, doesn't matter how fair, as long as it's because COVID.

Like many others, this is also my favorite podcasting app.

Just a couple of weeks ago, I was using this exact app to listen to the "Making Sense" podcast by Sam Harris, on the topic of covid-19. This is clearly not a government source, but as usual, Sam probes with some of the most intelligent, nuanced questions on this topic. It would be sad to see discussions like these get suppressed with the rest under Google's policy.

I've been a Pixel/Nexus user for about a decade. I'm feeling it's finally time to get out of Google-land and move to a more open phone with F-Droid. I don't trust Google to use their power fairly. Any recommendations for devices?

Apple denied an update for one of my apps because in the What's new text I said "In the quarantine we've learned to make friends with bugs in the home, but in the app they must be CRUSHED" They said "Inappropriate references to the COVID-19 pandemic"

I hadn't seen this discussed yet, but how did Google know that Podcast Addict was indexing corona-related content? What was the mechanism that triggered the ban? The developer's twitter said that he didn't include any corona keywords in the play store metadata, nor in the source code. The consensus seems to be that some automated system was too aggressive in banning.

My best guess is that the source for the info used to ban PA would be the reviews, i.e. someone posted a review mentioning "great podcasts about corona" or something. But I can't imagine it's that simple, because then I can just put "corona" in any review and get somebody's app banned.

Unless Google has some other way of tracking PA's content?

@dang: the URL of the article is https://reclaimthenet.org/google-play-suspends-podcast-addic... - not apple.news which is mere redirect.

This is my favorite app. I even got the paid version with no ads. Is there a way we can continue to support the developer? The app is so good and non-commerical. :-(

I definitely agree that these enormous platforms should not be allowed to censor us. It's highly authoritarian that the monopolist owners of huge platforms can just shut off dissenting voices. (After all, what else does it mean to only allow government sources that so often lie as in the case with masks or with the safety of reopening?) In any case, you can't stop the conspiracy theories from being promoted by shutting off podcasts when the president of the US is promoting some of them. News is gonna cover it regardless.

I might be bitter, but I have little love for corporations and their role in the public debate. And I abhor that they play moral compass. Call me a cynic, but that is really beautiful and bold of them. Don't pay taxes, evade worker laws and be cynical enough to proudly present how diverse you are and at the same time let your workers rot in the warehouses (I am looking at you AWS). "Look at the blind, talk to the deaf, listen to the mute and prey on the weak!" seems to be there motto.

The quicker multinationals like this are broken up, the better. For me personally, this is another reason to try to not use Google or Alphabet, it is not easy, but not impossible (yet).

Is this a desperate attempt to fix fake news? Or are they obeying some government order?

If anybody here knows Hiroshi Lockheimer (SVP platforms), please ping him about this.

This is a huge part of the reason why I think we should go with mobile-first web design rather than build native apps that have to go through these stores. I have to build and deploy a mobile app on iOS and Android for work and it's a) a pain in the ass and b) we're at the mercy of these two megacorporations.

If you can get by without a separate mobile app, do so. And if you need some functionality, consider pushing for that to be a part of the web standard and contributing to whatever projects can make that functionality accessible through the browsers.

It's time to regulate Google, Facebook, and Twitter as Common Carriers. They can control the pipes, but not the content flowing through them, like the phone company.

Use f-droid and install antennapod.

I had the same issue. I developed a legit and anonymous contact-tracing app [1], and there is no way I can easily distribute it on the app stores as Google and Apple unconditionally ban any app that makes any reference to the current pandemic.

[1] https://github.com/RaphaelJ/covid-tracer

They should ban Chrome from the Play Store because I can access non-approved Covid-19 content through it.

I say this sarcastically now, but web browsers will definitely become tools of censorship in the near future. Chrome itself will start blocking non-approved content. The Internet will no longer allow the distribution of any and all information, but only what is "approved".

I haven't seen this mentioned, but if this was the result of an automated process with no human review, do apps from com.google.* have a hardcoded exemption? Is there a low paid outsourced staff somewhere that provides the same exemption function? Are there any examples of Google's automated processes banning any of their own apps (or the entire account....)?

I'm impressed they actually gave a reason, what happened to "please RTFM for our terms and conditions" and "sorry I have given all the information I have, there is nothing more I can do, appeal denied"

Example: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23223560

This is what happens when you give a company/person to control your everything. Stop selling your data without actually selling.

Although you sometimes have to manually copy the RSS feed in, SoundWaves is not bad at all: https://f-droid.org/en/packages/org.bottiger.podcast/

I am actually curious if any of you have other recommended apps from F-droid

Does anyone at Google realize how toxic this is for their brand? When I see stuff like this, as a developer I think:

- 1. Wow, I'm never building an Android app if I can build a web app instead.

- 2. There is no way I am ever switching from an iPhone to an Android phone if apps get censored like this (although I'm sure Apple does similar things).

I hope Progressive Web Apps will disrupt the App store/Google Play store and will decentralize app distribution again

Like others in this thread, I use this app every day. Just a few weeks ago I was thinking about how much benefit I've gotten out of it and decided to get the paid version to give something back. On the rare occasions when I've had issues, my bug reports have gotten quick, friendly and useful responses from Xavier.

I would be quite happy for Google to disappear. I'm beginning to think that anyone who works for it should consult their conscience.

Podcast Addict is not only the best podcast client but one of the best apps available.

Sorry I don't have anything substantive to add to the conversation, just wanted to add my vote for Podcast Addict.

So would they have banned an app that told people to wear masks when the CDC and WHO said they were not effective? I proudly went against government advice then and plan on doing a lot of things against government advice in the future. This pandemic has highlighted the rot in government institutions.

undefined

Google is under a great deal of scrutiny by governments right now. Their collective fight-or-flight behavior has kicked in and they're starting to exhibit some pretty crazy behavior.

There's never been a better time to excise Google from your life, or if you work there, to excise your life from theirs.

I used to think the internet was this great place resistant to censorship and government intervention. Instead you now have to tip-toe around and every comment ist tied to your real identity forever. At least I‘m using Apple, so pissing off Google won’t mean I can’t use electronic payments.

> What Google is asking of Podcast Addict would be comparable to Google asking a web browser app to remove references to all the websites and social media posts that reference the coronavirus unless the reference comes from an official government entity or public health organization.

Give it a few years

Google's own stuff doesn't filter content from non-govt sources, guess it's time to suspend?

Seems like it's back up, with no changes to the app: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bambuna.po...

Seems like a mistake by an automated system. It's a bummer that there's infrequent mixups like this, but I do wonder what the alternative is. YouTube faces a similarly hard moderation problem. There's nothing they could do to appease even just 90% of criticisms.

This is obviously overreach in my opinion, and (tangentially) might explain the bump in installs for my podcast player. I had a feature on COVID, guess I’m going to remove that... (I know that doesn’t protect the app from removal, but could delay it, I don’t know)

Pretty ironic given that an "official government source" advocated the ineffective and dangerous drug hydroxychloroquine and suggested people inject bleach into their bodies.

Edit: Changed hydroxyquinone to the correct hydroxychloroquine.

undefined

Has there been any scientific assessment of how powerful Google is compared to governments?

Governments in general seem to be lagging hard behind advances on the net. More and more power is ending up in the hands of companies.

undefined

Update: https://twitter.com/lockheimer/status/1262553369320648704

There seems to be this mistaken idea that smartphones are like small PCs that can make phone calls. But they're really far more like gaming consoles. They're pretty much locked down.

Google Anthos is an attempt to do the same with business software? Soon, if you have to list your business software in Anthos store, you will be at mercy of Google.

This problem has a simple solution. Don't host your stuff with giant corporations who's only motivation is avoiding conflict and making profit.

The main thing I miss from moving to iPhone from android was podcast addict. It was such a good app. Can't find anything near as good for iPhone

... I switched to podcast addict after giving up on Google ever getting their heads out of their own butts on GPM and Google Podcasts.

Now they're banning it???

undefined

Aren't podcasts essentially audio files over RSS?

Broke: culture war over general purpose computation.

Woke: culture war over general purpose content distribution.

If you like appstores you have to like censorship as well. Welcome to the future of the World Not so Wide Web

This is terrible, I've paid for the paid version for a while and have been a big fan of Podcast Addict.

So is Google's own podcast app similarly banned? This is really quite pathetic.

Ah man, this is one the few apps I use daily. Even remember the guys name, Xavier something.

If we have the app already, it will still work right? Damn that's brutal.

A solid open source phone can't get here soon enough.

The author has to blame himself that he is selling his app in the Google Play store. Then, of course, the author is exposed to Google's despotism. Sell the .apk somewhere else.

What were the offending podcasts?

So Reddit has /r/conspiracy that can be accessed through the app, should that be removed?

That’s fine. Now they are no longer protected by section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.

What a load of garbage, next they'll ban overcast because they let people subscribe to RSS feeds, and some people have hard left/right wing podcasts, or anything you want to see that's not mainstream.

#boycottGoogle

fdroid

Original link: https://reclaimthenet.org/google-play-suspends-podcast-addic...

Weird that Apple does this proxying... not going to open up that News app.

Good news, it's not Apple, so you can still easily download and install the app.

The bad news is Google is acting like Apple.

I really hate how Google and Facebook have become "Ministries of truth". Especially since they are some of the most agenda ridden, scummy companies in existence. And you can down vote me straight to hell and back for that statement, it doesn't make it any less true.

It's sad to see an American company stooping to basically tin-pot levels of disrespect for human rights.

Contact the FTC, because this is an example of Google leveraging a non-arms-length arrangement to interfere with and exclude competitors to their own products Google Podcasts and YouTube which directly violate the policy they are applying to Podcast Addict.

There is no legitimate business function served by this inconsistent conduct, and it looks like a textbook case of single-firm anticompetitive conduct.

Google is behaving pathologically and directly attacking the dialectic. They are quickly becoming one of the most harmful software vendors in the US.

Continuing to use their software and services in any way is extremely irresponsible. Deplatform now!

HN user bans Google Play Store from their phone for repeatedly installing unwanted parasite "Chrome"

Sounds like an antitrust issue to me.

May as well remove the fucking Chrome browser while they're at it.

I did a ctrl-f and got 0 results so let's start the mandatory

"Google is a private company it can ban whatever it likes, it is not censorship" thread

I just noticed that this is the same shit right wing organization that conveniently protects alt-right stuff when it gets banned from somewhere. Can we please not promote this kind of stuff here?

Edit: to back myself up.

Here is this website standing behind authoritarian right-wing government doing antisemitic dogwhistles: https://reclaimthenet.org/hungarian-government-facebook-over...

Here it is protecting conspiracy theorists against "censorship": https://reclaimthenet.org/youtube-demonetizes-sgtreport-trur...

Here it is covering the ban of a known right-wing troll (also piss drinker) Joey Salads: https://reclaimthenet.org/twitter-suspends-joey-salads/

Here it is supporting a fringe far-right social network Gab a bunch of times: https://reclaimthenet.org/gab-biggest-mastadon-node/ https://reclaimthenet.org/new-gab-decentralized-version/ https://reclaimthenet.org/gab-chat/ https://reclaimthenet.org/gab-pro-benefits/

It's just so much consistent support for basically fascists on this. Propping this website up is dangerous.

Good. When private companies see that something they are doing or enabling could lead to preventable human death, they have a responsibility to act on it.

If an app in their marketplace is helping spread misinformation about a public health crisis, that app can and should be removed from Google's marketplace.

America is a capitalist society. If you're going to do business in Google's ecosystem, you have to follow Google's rules. Google isn't tolerating COVID-19 misinformation, so if you're an app publisher in Google's ecosystem, you should adopt a similar stance.

Human life is on the line here. Google is doing the right thing.

Freedom of speech is a bitch but a necessary one...

At what point is this wrongthink under the guise of public safety?

If there was a red button that kills the Internet, Google would press it.

Meta:

Why are you posting an Apple News link that is a redirection to the original source, instead of the original source?

The have been discussing covid 19 on my radio, fuck I guess that means they are going to impound my car.

So what’s the problem? HN users always complain about Apple’s “walled garden” and how much better Android is because users can sideload apps.

(Note sarcasm)

I'm pretty sure POTUS doesn't approve google. Please ban yourself.

This is disgusting, Google has become disgusting..

This is exactly why Google and maybe other large corporations absolutely need to get split up. I hope Trump takes action against US tech companies as he have said he would. Very few things would make me happier as an european.