Twitter says Chinese official’s virus disinformation doesn’t violate rules

Misinformation about the coronavirus spread by Chinese government officials does not violate Twitter’s policies, a spokesperson for the company told The Hill Monday.

In particular, tweets from Lijian Zhao, an official spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, insinuating that the U.S. military may have spread the coronavirus to Wuhan, China, will remain up.

Twitter’s spokesperson pointed to the company’s position of giving public figures broad exemptions to many of its policies.

“Presently, direct interactions with fellow public figures, comments on political issues of the day, or foreign policy saber-rattling on economic or military issues are generally not in violation of the Twitter Rules,” the site reads.

Twitter’s decision not to take down the tweets implying that the disease, which originated in Wuhan, was brought by the U.S. has already drawn criticism.

“When Twitter goes so full Chinese propaganda that they’ve even lost The Daily Beast…” Donald Trump Jr., the president’s son, wrote, quote-tweeting the outlet that first reported on the exemptions.