The U.S. Strategic Command, a branch of the Department of Defense in charge of the nuclear arsenal, tweeted out an article from Breitbart News this week. The ultra-conservative website has been known as "the platform for the alt-right," running headlines like "WOULD YOU RATHER YOUR CHILD HAD FEMINISM OR CANCER" and publishing certain stories under the tag "Black Crime."
The former chairman of Breitbart, top White House adviser Stephen Bannon, was forced to step down from the National Security Council -- in a major shakeup for the young and troubled administration of President Donald Trump.
While the article tweeted by Strategic Command is not necessarily as bad as the myriad of other Breitbart controversies, it's still quite concerning to see a powerful military branch use such a discredited publication as a credible new source. The tweet, at the time of writing this article, has generated about 1,700 replies. Unsurprisingly, this appears to be much more than the average Strategic Command tweet. Many users expressed outrage that a branch of their military would publicly tout a website such as Breitbart.
The tweet, at the time of writing this article, has generated about 1,700 replies. Unsurprisingly, this appears to be much more than the average Strategic Command tweet. Many users expressed outrage that a branch of their military would publicly tout a website such as Breitbart.
As ThinkProgress notes, Breitbart's Pentagon correspondent Kristina Wong, who wrote the article, defended herself amidst the backlash.
This, of course, comes after Trump himself has cracked down on the types of content government social media accounts are able to publish. After his inauguration in January, he quickly scolded the National Park Service for retweeting posts regarding the inauguration's attendance. Department of Energy employees were also banned from sharing any information about a solar project they were working on, reported ThinkProgress.
What makes all of the social media controversy ironic is that Trump has also used his account to tweet baseless accusations accusing former President Barack Obama of wiretapping Trump Tower. Who would have guessed that twitter fingers would be shaping the legacy of the president of the United States?
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