Fox News host Greg Gutfeld joined other prominent conservative voices on Saturday by abandoning his Twitter account after the social media platform permanently banned President Donald Trump.
“To be true to the resolution to myself: this is my last tweet. [O]ther than to read news, [I won’t] be on [T]witter,” Gutfeld first tweeted on Jan. 2. Offering the link to his own website, Gutfeld continued, “[Y]ou’re all invited there; just leave the bullshit behind. Tata.”
To be true to the resolution to myself: this is my last tweet. other than to read news, i wont be on twitter. If you wish to contact me, join https://t.co/vNvxXtFyey – which is over at locals. you're all invited there; just leave the bullshit behind. Tata.
— GregGutfeld (@greggutfeld) January 3, 2021
On Saturday, after Twitter had banned the president and seemingly began purging the followers of conservative accounts, Gutfeld returned for a final sign-off. “[O]kay, this IS my last tweet: CNN tries to get FNC banned. Apple targets Parler. Publishers dump writers. [M]usic labels drop artists. [T]witter bans/removes thousands. [T]ech companies join hands. [T]his redefines who the true rebels are.”
“[I]f you like the purge, you’re the servant,” Gutfeld added.
okay, this IS my last tweet:
CNN tries to get FNC banned.
Apple targets Parler.
Publishers dump writers.
music labels drop artists.
twitter bans/removes thousands.
tech companies join hands.this redefines who the true rebels are.
if you like the purge, you're the servant.
— GregGutfeld (@greggutfeld) January 9, 2021
After many conservative accounts apparently hemorrhaged followers after the president’s ban, Fox News reported:
“Fox & Friends” co-host Pete Hegseth on Saturday described it as “something of a purge” that might have taken place, as thousands of users disappeared from the platform. Hegseth also suggested that the move might have come after the Georgia Senate runoff results earlier this week, not just after Trump’s account was permanenty suspended.
The exact reason for the shift in users is not known, but it could be that users have voluntarily left the platform along with the president. Fox News reached out to Twitter for comment on the drop in users and was referred to their support page. A follow-up request was not yet returned.
Gutfeld follows in the footsteps of fellow Fox hosts Lou Dobbs and Mark Levin, both of whom left Twitter following the company’s muzzling of the president.
“I don’t believe any American should ever tolerate those who deny us freedom of speech or who would ever be so arrogant as to censor our President,” Dobbs tweeted Friday. “I’m withdrawing from Twitter as of right now.” He urged his followers to join him on Parler.
I don't believe any American should ever tolerate those who deny us freedom of speech or who would ever be so arrogant as to censor our President. I'm withdrawing from Twitter as of right now. Please join me on Parler @LouDobbsTonight. God bless you and America.
— Lou Dobbs (@LouDobbs) January 9, 2021
Hours earlier, radio host Mark Levin suspended himself from the platform. “I have suspended my own Twitter account in protest against Twitter’s fascism,” Levin said. “I ask all my followers to join me now on Parler and Rumble.”
I have suspended my own Twitter account in protest against Twitter’s fascism. I ask all my followers to join me now on Parler and Rumble.https://t.co/XswC88juiGhttps://t.co/1YeTi0ywBk
— Mark R. Levin (@marklevinshow) January 8, 2021
Radio host Rush Limbaugh also apparently deactivated his Twitter account after Trump was banned. As The Daily Wire reported:
Conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh reportedly deleted his Twitter account shortly after President Donald Trump was banned from the platform on Friday night.
The link to Limbaugh’s account, which had amassed more than half a million followers before being deleted, now leads to a page that reads: “This account doesn’t exist[.] Try searching for another.” Rumors swirled that Twitter had suspended the account, but a spokesperson for Twitter told both CNN reporter Oliver Darcy and Fox News reporter Joseph Wulfsohn that whoever controls the account deactivated it.
“A Twitter spokesperson tells me the company did not suspend Rush Limbaugh’s account. In other words, it appears Limbaugh (or someone acting on his behalf) deactivated it,” Darcy tweeted.
Wulfsohn tweeted, “Twitter SPOX: ‘I would like to correct that He is not suspended. The user deactivated their account.’”
Related: Rush Limbaugh Reportedly Deletes Twitter Account After Trump Ban