Update (2/10/21): Following Media Matters’ reporting, TikTok removed the hashtag “#AbsoluteProof” and at least one video containing clips of Mike Lindell’s film. YouTube similarly removed some of the videos with Lindell’s film. However, additional posts promoting the film are still active on both TikTok and YouTube at this time.
A new video from MyPillow CEO and Trump supporter Mike Lindell that's filled with election misinformation is spreading on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, and YouTube, even though each platform has a policy prohibiting this kind of misinformation.
Lindell has been a leading voice in promoting dangerous conspiracy theories about the 2020 presidential election (and bankrolling the proliferation of this lie) across right-wing media and social media.
Twitter permanently suspended Lindell for peddling election misinformation. Lindell then attempted to use his corporate MyPillow account to evade Twitter’s ban; that account was also permanently suspended.
Lindell’s Facebook and Instagram accounts are both active and full of election and COVID-19 misinformation. In fact, Lindell has access to multiple accounts for himself and his company. On Facebook, he has a personal account, a professional page, and a MyPillow corporate page. On Instagram, he has a verified personal account and a MyPillow account.
Even though former President Donald Trump’s multiple attempts to overturn the outcome of the 2020 election failed in courts, over 70% of likely Republican voters question the election results. Meanwhile, his supporters continue to push baseless claims of widespread voter fraud. Lindell is one of Trump’s most vocal supporters to promote unsubstantiated election fraud claims and conspiracy theories, and he recently released a film that The New York Times called a “disinfomercial.” In the video, titled “Absolute Proof,” Lindell spent over two hours falsely claiming that Trump won the election, making wild allegations of fraud that have no basis in reality, and railing against “cancel culture.”
Following the release of Lindell’s video on February 5, YouTube and Vimeo removed copies for violating each platform’s election integrity policies, but additional versions of the film are still being uploaded to YouTube. Facebook and Twitter have both labeled posts sharing the film as misinformation and reduced its distribution, with Facebook confirming that the “video has been rated false by one of Facebook’s third-party fact-checkers so it’s been labeled and its distribution is being reduced.” But Media Matters has still found active posts on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter that have no label, and TikTok has not taken any action against posts with the video, even though the platform claimed on February 3 that it was taking new steps to crack down on misinformation.
Since before the election, social media platforms have claimed that they are trying to stop the spread of election misinformation, but these platforms have failed to adequately implement or consistently enforce related policies. For example, Facebook took minimal action against election misinformation from Trump and his allies on its platforms, allowing users to organize and promote “Stop the Steal” events, such as the January 6 rally that led to the insurrection at the Capitol on January 6. Media Matters and others have documented similar failures of other platforms, such as Twitter, TikTok, and YouTube.
The limited actions of social media platforms has allowed Lindell’s conspiracy-laden video to spread across Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, and YouTube.
