Peloton is apparently censoring hashtags that include the phrase “LetsGoBrandon” from its platform, a Daily Wire review of the company’s web platform has found.
Accusations of the at-home fitness company censoring the phrase, a de-vulgarized version of a popular anti-President Joe Biden chant, surfaced online this week. Users posted screenshots of the company blocking them from creating tags, which users can use to find like-minded people, with the phrase “LetsGoBrandon.”
The Daily Wire attempted to create several different tags all including the phrase “LetsGoBrandon,” such as “LetsGoBrandonAgain” and “LetsGoBrandon2.” All variations were blocked under a message that “This tag does not meet our guidelines” and directions to contact Peloton support.
Peloton did not immediately return The Daily Wire’s request for comment.
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Peloton does allow many other politically-connected tags. A Daily Wire review of tags on the platform showed a mix of politically left and right tags in use, though tags typically associated with progressives seemed to have a much larger following. A tag labeled “BlackLivesMatter” is one of the most popular groups on the site, boasting nearly 270,000 members.
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A tag labelled “WearADamnMask” had nearly 70,000 members, and a tag labelled “LGBTQAllyGrp” had about 10,000.
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The site also featured tags for “trump2020,” “DeSantis2024,” and “ConservativePelomoms.” The Trump group had the largest following of the three at about 2,800 members. The site also featured a series of tags playing off of the “Lets Go Brandon” phase while avoiding using the exact wording, such as tags for “LetsGoBrando” and “Letsgooobrandon.”
The phrase “Let’s Go Brandon” caught on as an anti-Biden chant last month when a reporter mistook a Nascar crowd chanting “f*** Joe Biden” as a cheer for a driver. She repeated the mistake on air and the clip rocketed around social media.
Peloton’s community guidelines and content policy bans “hate, offensive, and obscene speech.”
“Hateful, offensive, or obscene speech is strictly forbidden on the Peloton Service. This includes any leaderboard names, locations, profile pictures, Tags or any other User Content that promotes, relates to, or condones lack of respect, discrimination, or violence of any kind against individuals or groups based on age, ethnicity/culture, race, nationality, immigration status, disability status, physical ability, gender or gender identity/expression, sexual orientation, religion, veteran status, body shape, socio-economic status, or political affiliation,” the policy says.
While the reason for censorship is unclear, Peloton has a history of “woke” behavior.
Earlier this year, the at-home fitness company rolled out employee “anti-racist” training that taught that phrases such as “blacklisted” and “grandfathered in” are “white supremacist” terms. The company has also been a prominent supporter of LGBT and Black Lives Matter issues. As The Daily Wire reported in July:
Peloton has a history of promoting political and cultural issues such as LGBT issues and Black Lives Matter. The fitness company offers a series of “Pride” classes each year in celebration of the LGBT Pride parade and instructors have frequently promoted its user-created #BlackLivesMatter group.
The company also offers resources for white employees to become “white allies.” Employees were told that if they purchase books they should “purchase books directly from authors or local bookstores, especially those owned by Black people, Indigenous people, or people of color (BIPOC).”
According to the allyship guide, employees are supposed to “read and listen to resources created by BIPOC” and “financially compensate them” to become sufficiently “anti-racist.” Employees are also told to acknowledge their “whiteness” and “privilege.”