Gab

Gab.com (formerly Gab.aiRaymond Hackney (September 22, 2018). "Gab.ai upgrades to Gab.com". TheDomains.) is a social network website founded in Austin, Texas in August 2016 by CEO Andrew Torba as a "free speech" alternative to Facebook and Twitter. Apparently, the website was founded in response to Facebook employees suppressing conservative™ articles (according to Torba, though those in the reality-based community might disagree)https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/30/arts/the-far-right-has-a-new-digital-safe-space.html and the "entirely left-leaning Big Social monopoly" by mainstream social media platforms.https://www.buzzfeed.com/alexkantrowitz/new-social-network-gab-growing-fast-free-speech
Despite its initially innocuous appearance and good intentions such as its "people and free speech first" policy, the website has unsurprisingly (see 8chan, another free speech Internet experiment) become a refuge for cranks, conspiracy theorists, alt-righters, white supremacists, white nationalists, Neo-Nazis, anti-Semites, internet trolls, homophobes/transphobes, Islamophobes, terrorists/extremists, denialists (Holocaust, Obama birther and climate change), and other unsavory creatures of the web.
Gab has since become the dumping ground for all things banned from Twitter, and not in a good way. Until 2018, the logo of the website was a frog (which screamed Pepe the Frog, though Torba denies the connection, claiming that it was inspired from Bible verses Exodus 8:1–12 and Psalms 78:45). The website is one of the several outlets that form the alt-tech.
The website has over 835,000 users. However, on the bright side, as of 2019, it only has 19,526 active user accounts.https://www.splcenter.org/hatewatch/2019/02/14/no-way-gab-has-800000-users-web-host-says The site lacks a full-text search feature but supports searching by hashtags.
Torba's ultimate goal with Gab is to create a full-fledged right-wing tech ecosystem dedicated to his militant version of "Christianity", which is based on radical white nationalist pique toward non-Christians, QAnon conspiratorial thinking, and outrage at everything "elite". "The CEO Trying to Build a White, Christian, Secessionist Tech Industry" by Jacob Silverman, The New Republic, 2021 August 23
==Dissenter==
In February 2019, Andrew Torba introduced Dissenter, a new project that claimed to be "the comments section of the internet". It is a browser add-on that allows people to comment on news websites. Not so surprisingly, it has been blocked by Mozilla and Google for attracting the same audience that Gab brings in. Dissenter has been called "the (browser) extension of the far right." Gab also offers a web browser also called "Dissenter" (a fork of Brave Browser) to respond to being blocked by Mozilla and Google.Frequently Asked Questions. Archived from dissenter.com, 15 April 2021. The and Linux versions of the browser (v1.5.114) were last updated March 2020, whereas the macOS version (0.70.122) was last updated on November 2019, meaning the browser is functionally abandonware (or at the very least, concerningly old).
==Relaunch==
In July 2019, Gab was relaunched after struggling from the fallout of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting. The relaunched site was built on the free software Mastodon, but not in affiliation with its developers.https://blog.joinmastodon.org/2019/07/statement-on-gabs-fork-of-mastodon/ The nature of the free AGPL3 license that Mastodon is licensed under prevents its team from doing anything about Gab's fork.https://github.com/tootsuite/mastodon/blob/master/LICENSE Thankfully, Gab's viewership has been plummeting since the updates.https://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/gab.com
==Controversies==
Because of its content, Gab.com has been banned from several outlets. Apple banned Gab due to its pornographic content, while Twitter blocked it for its feature that shares posts from the site on Twitter.https://www.inc.com/salvador-rodriguez/gab-apple-twitter.html Unsurprisingly, Google Play also banned the website for violating its hate speech policy.https://techcrunch.com/2017/08/17/alt-social-network-gab-booted-from-google-play-store-for-hate-speech/ In response, Gab.com sued Google for violating antitrust laws.https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2017/09/twitter-rival-gab-sues-google-over-app-store-rejection/
On September 5, 2017, Gab.com was forced to censor a post deemed offensive by Instra Corporation in 48 hours.https://www.oneangrygamer.net/2017/09/gab-ai-forced-to-censor-post-after-registrar-company-issues-threat/38824/ The next day, the company got embroiled in another censorship controversy when domain company AsiaRegistry demanded that Andrew Anglin's offensive post about Heather Heyer's killing at the Unite the Right rally be removed; the company complied by removing his post.
https://www.theverge.com/2017/9/6/16259150/gab-ai-registrar-andrew-anglin-daily-stormer-crackdown
On October 27, 2018, crazed anti-semite Robert Bowers killed 11 people at the Tree of Life, a synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.Campbell Robertson, Christopher Mele and Sabrina Tavernise, 11 Killed in Pittsburgh Synagogue Massacre; Suspect Charged With 29 Counts. The New York Times, 27 October 2018. The suspect was found to be an active user of Gab, and used the platform as an echo chamber for racist, anti-Semitic and bigoted ideology. Bowers blamed Jews for bringing in Central American migrants into the United States, claiming "HIAS [Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society] likes to bring invaders that kill our people. I can't sit by and watch my people get slaughtered. Screw your optics, I'm going in,"Robert Bowers · @onedingo Gab (archived from 27 Oct 2018 15:30:05 UTC). and "Why Hello there HIAS! You like to bring hostile invaders to dwell among us? We appreciate the list of friends you have provided." He believed that there was a white genocide, writing "Daily Reminder: Diversity means chasing down the last white person," featured the neo-Nazi catchphrase 1488 on his profile at least twice (on his account picture and the other in a post titled "Make Ovens 1488 F Again"), and reposted other anti-Semitic, neo-Nazi and Holocaust denial/Holocaust-related content from other users such as Patrick Little and Daily Stormer writer "Grandpa Lampshade". Shortly thereafter, Paypal suspended Gab from their service, and Gab's hosting provider gave them the boot.What's Gab, the social platform used by the Pittsburgh shooting suspect? CNN, 27 October 2018.Andrew Liptak, Paypal bans Gab following Pittsburgh shooting. The Verge, 27 October 2018.Gab.com on Twitter, 27 October 2018. Alan Pyke, Gab, the hate-breeding social network Robert Bowers used, is going dark for now. Think Progress, 28 October 2018.
==The hate flows down from the top==
Unsurprisingly, Andrew Torba, Gab's CEO, is antisemitic like much of Gab's userbase is. In October 29 2021, he tweeted a tirade regarding his desire to create a "parallel Christian society" due to being "fed up and done with the one", and supported this with antisemitic comics from StoneToss. "Gab’s CEO deactivates Twitter account after wildly antisemitic tirade""Gab CEO Andrew Torba Broadcasts His Antisemitism Across Social Media Platforms", ADL, 2021 December 15 On his social feed on Gab, Torbin has even fewer problems whipping out anti-Semitic tropes in his posts, such as "Zionists" being responsible for creating the Federal Reserve (which for some reason is a "subversion of American Christianity") "Gab CEO Andrew Torba Broadcasts His Antisemitism Across Social Media Platforms", ADL, 2021 December 15, or "Jews control the media". "The ADL attacked President Trump and I in the same week. Because the things we are saying are true!", Andrew Torba, Gab, 2021 December 20, archived on 2021 December 20
In late January 2022, Torba announced that Gab would sponsor as well as give a speech at the America First Political Action Conference, the neo-Nazi alternative political conference to run by neo-Nazi Nick Fuentes."Tonight I will be giving a speech live at AFPAC. I hope you can tune in. Shortly before I give my speech I will be publishing the transcript on Gab News. My goal with this speech is to inspire the next generation to build the Parallel Economy for the Glory of God. The title of the speech is GAB: Go And Build.", Andrew Torba, GAB, 2022 February 25, archived on 2022 February 25 In the announcement, Torba declared that he wanted "unity on the right", then proceeded to trash-talk CPAC for supposedly being "sponsored by Facebook and Google" and Turning Point USA for being "sponsored by atheist libertarian billionaires". This announcement actually was extreme enough to piss off many Gab members. "The growing links between Gab CEO Andrew Torba and Holocaust denier Nick Fuentes" by Alex Kaplan, Media Matters, 2022 February 18"Gab users are furious after its CEO announces partnership with notorious white nationalist" by Claire Goforth, Daily Dot, 2022 January 25"Gab is glad to be sponsoring AFPAC 3.", Andrew Torba, post on Gab, 2022 January 25, archived on 2022 March 1
In the rest of 2022, Torba doubled down on his hardcore Christian nationalist side as well as his antisemitism. In one video, for instance, he stated that he believed that modern right-wing politics in America "is an explicitly Christian movement because this is an explicitly Christian country", and then tied this to his support for transforming America into a Christian theocracy. ("You're not going to be forced to convert or anything like this, but you're going to enjoy…the fruits of living in a Christian society under Christian laws.")"Mastriano under fire for payment to 'Christian nationalist' platform" by Allan Smith, NBC News, 2022 July 28"Gab Founder Andrew Torba Wants to Build a Christian Nationalist Internet" by Tess Owen, Vice News, 2022 September 29 Torba's belief that the conservative movement should be 100% Christian meant that even prominent Jewish conservatives such as Ben Shapiro and Dave Rubin were verboten. ("They don't share our values. They have inverted values from us as Christians.")"Far-right platform Gab veers into overt antisemitism — and only some Republicans back away" by Kathryn Joyce, Salon, 2022 August 13 On his social media accounts, Torba continued to repost many antisemitic posts from his platform's users, including the white genocide/ conspiracy theory espoused by mass murderer Bowers; praise for Holocaust denial; complaints about supposed ""Jewish influence" in government, business, and the media; and a post stating that "the Jews killed Christ"."Doug Mastriano consultant Andrew Torba reposts attacks on Jews for “white genocide,” subversion, and domination" by Eric Hananoki, Media Matters, 2022 July 20 
All of this culminated in October 2022 when Torba, along with a pastor named Andrew Isker, self-published a book entitled Christian Nationalism: A Biblical Guide For Taking Dominion And Discipling Nations. In this book, Torba described his vision of building up a parallel "Christian" society that eventually will "fill the vacuum of the secular state when it falls" (exactly why the state will fall, beyond Torba's belief that the "system" is "wicked and corrupt", is not exactly clear). Torba's version of "Christianity" naturally is severely tilted towards culture war topics (including transphobic, homophobic, and anti-abortion rhetoric, not to mention the typical misuse of snarl words such as "Marxist" and "woke"). Other bits of this book focused on "traditional values" concepts such as masculinity and patriarchy, fire and brimstone rhetoric, spiritual warfare, and eventual Dominionism. The religious ideology that Torba tolerates is very narrow; not only is his bête noire religions, such as Judaism, "a false religion", but "if you say you are a Christian and you reject “Christian Nationalism,” you are just a disobedient Christian.""I Read the Gab CEO’s Awful New Christian Nationalism Book So You Don’t Have To" by Rebekah Kohlhepp, She Seeks Nonfiction blog, 2022 September 11"Book co-authored by Gab CEO Andrew Torba makes Amazon bestseller list" by Matthew Kassel, Jewish Insider, 2022 September 14"We read the Gab founder's how-to guide to Christian nationalism. The book is part of a new trend of conservatives openly embracing the ideology." by Kelsey Vlamis, Business Insider, 2022 October 23
Torba also endorsed several far-right Republican politicians in the 2022 midterm elections that also flirted with Christian nationalism ideology. These endorsements were often extremely controversial (and not welcomed by some, though not all, of the endorsed candidates) thanks to Torba's rabid antisemitism.
Unsurprisingly, Torba is against the COVID-19 vaccine, and has used quackery like ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine to "treat" the bouts of COVID-19 he caught."So I had "Covid" again. Was nothing at all like the first time which was only a few months ago. 48 hours of Ivermectin, Hydroxy, and a Z pack and I am testing negative now. It seriously felt like a 24 hour head cold. I don't trust these covid tests at all. I don't trust a single thing we have been told by "the experts" at all either. All I know is I am thankful that God gave me a glorious immune system and that I remain unvaxxed from Big Pharma's clot shot.", Andrew Torba, Gab, 2022 January 30, archived on 2022 January 30
==See also==
* Christian Identity, a strain of Christianity comparable to Torba's (that is, assuming it isn't precisely what he believes in)
* PewTube, a failed "free speech", alt-right alternative to YouTube that was rife with the same type of content as Gab.
* 8chan, another example of what normally happens when you don't set speech limits.
==External links==
*Gab
*Their Twitter irony meter is off the charts here
==Notes==
==References==
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