U.S. government scientists set up 'rogue' Twitter feeds in open defiance of Trump
Science
U.S. government scientists set up ‘rogue’ Twitter feeds in open defiance of Trump
Employees from more than a dozen U.S. government agencies have established a network of unofficial “rogue” Twitter feeds in defiance of what they see as attempts by President Donald Trump to muzzle federal climate change research and other scientific activities. Using Trump’s preferred mode of discourse, staff members at various science and health agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency, NASA, Food and Drug Administration, the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Weather Service, have privately launched Twitter accounts — borrowing the names and logos of their agencies — to protest what they view as censorship. Many of their messages carry Twitter hashtags #resist or #resistance.
Can’t wait for President Trump to call us FAKE NEWS. You can take our official twitter, but you’ll never take our free time!
An anonymous National Park Service employee on the newly opened Twitter account @AltNatParkService
Employees at the EPA and the departments of Interior, Agriculture, and Health and Human Services have confirmed that the new administration has instructed them to remove webpages or limit how they communicate to the public. The restrictions have reinforced concerns that Trump, a climate change skeptic, is out to squelch federally backed research showing that emissions from fossil fuel combustion and other human activities are contributing to global warming. Because the Twitter feeds were set up anonymously as private accounts, they are beyond the control of the government.
