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Prince Harry claims he warned Twitter boss of January 6 US Capitol riot

Prince says he warned Twitter boss – and has not heard from him since

Graeme Massie
Los Angeles
Wednesday 10 November 2021 07:38 GMT
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Prince Harry claims he predicted January 6 US Capitol riot
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Prince Harry has claimed he predicted the January 6 US Capitol riot but that he was ignored by Twitter boss Jack Dorsey.

The royal told a “Re:Wired” panel on the danger of the Internet “lie machine” that he had emailed the entrepreneur about the role the social media platform was playing in Donald Trump’s attempt to stay in power.

“Jack and I were emailing each other prior to January 6 and I warned him that his platform was allowing a coup to be staged,” Harry told host Steven Levy on Tuesday.

“That email was sent the day before, then it happened I have not heard from him since.”

Supporters of Donald Trump violently forced their way into the US Capitol building after the one-term president hosted a “Stop the Steal” rally in Washington DC on 6 January.

They attempted to prevent the certification of Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 presidential election, with many claiming Mr Trump had called for them to invade the heart of US democracy.

Pro-Trump supporters storm the U.S. Capitol following a rally with President Donald Trump on January 6, 2021 in Washington, DC.
Pro-Trump supporters storm the U.S. Capitol following a rally with President Donald Trump on January 6, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Getty Images)

Lawmakers ran and hid as Trump supporters sacked the building, with some of them calling for the hanging of then vice president Mike Pence.

Federal prosecutors have charged more than 600 people in 40 states with participating in the riot, which resulted in a historic second impeachment of Mr Trump.

“The internet is being defined by hate, division and lies and that can’t be right,” added Harry.

He also told the panel, which also included Renée DiResta from Stanford University, and Rashad Robinson, the president of Color of Change, that misinformation was “a global humanitarian crisis.”

“I learned from a very early age that the incentives of publishing are not necessarily aligned with the incentives of truth,” he added.

“My experience I guess has been more pre-social media, around the UK press, who sadly conflate profit with purpose and news with entertainment. They do not report the news, they create it.

“They have successfully turned fact based news into opinion-based gossip with devastating consequences for the country.”

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