Here’s how things are going on the platform formerly known as Twitter

If you left Twitter when it became X and wonder how things are going in your absence, Mike Cosper might have a word for you today.

Cosper is an evangelical Christian who leads media efforts at Christianity Today. He’s a podcast host and author and — as evangelical leaders go these days — a centrist. You may remember him as host of the popular podcast “The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill.”

On Monday, Oct. 28, Cosper posted this thought on X in reflection about the Donald Trump rally at Madison Square Garden:

To my pro-Trump friends/followers. I just want to offer one more lens on this thing last night: Stephen Miller echoes Hitler’s nativist slogan. Tucker Carlson misidentifies Harris’ racial identity for the LOLs. Tony Hinchcliffe calls Puerto Rico an island of garbage. Sid Rosenberg joked about it being a Nazi rally — and taking the gig anyway. All of this (and more) at MSG where an infamous, Nazi-friendly rally was held in 1939. So … if you think it’s unfair to compare trump to Hitler, or to call him a fascist, or to call him and his movement “racist”… maybe a little introspection is worth your time? Maybe leaning into the Nazi / racist accusations isn’t just something for the memes and lols, but actually bad for the country? But maybe that’s just me … .”

In about 24 hours, that post drew 97,000 views and 237 comments, most of which were blistering against Cosper and some of which cannot be printed here due to decency standards.

The very first reaction came from Joel W. Berry, managing editor of the conservative satire site Babylon Bee. As with most things related to the Babylon Bee, it was not apparent whether Berry was being serious or satirical, stirring the pot or staking a claim.

“This is a deranged and godlessly uncharitable reading of last night’s rally. Spend some time in prayer and ask God to help you,” he tweeted.

To which Cosper replied: “Deranged? Where am I not telling the truth?”

Berry: “Trump had the rally at Madison Square Garden, where democrat politicians have rallies and celebrities hold concerts every year? And you’re making a connection to Hitler? Deranged.”

Cosper: “I didn’t make the Hitler connection — his own presenters did.”

Satire or not, things went downhill fast from there.

Someone named Brian went after Cosper for real: “To my TDS Mikey people out there. Stop assigning horrible evil intent to people you don’t agree with because of your personal distaste of Donald Trump. I assure you, Mike, it is just you who come to conclusions like this. I can’t even comprehend how you assign such evil motives to people like @redsteeze or @TonyHinchcliffe. Your sick Mike, get some help and maybe even some f**ing introspection. What a pathetic person you’ve become, all cause Trump is beneath you.”

“TDS” is conservative shorthand for “Trump Derangement Syndrome.”

Most of the stream of reactions made fun of Cosper for his beliefs, denied the reality of what he wrote, explained away the worst comments at the rally as “jokes” and claimed Trump couldn’t be a modern-day Hitler because there were Orthodox Jews in the audience waving Israeli flags.

One supporter told Cosper the replies he was getting were “ghastly.”

This is the nature of X today, a platform largely abandoned by moderate and progressive voices and left to be dominated by those who admire or tolerate Elon Musk, the new owner of what used to be Twitter. Musk not only is an advocate of free speech for conservatives at all costs but uses the platform to advance his support of Trump.

On Sunday, Musk, posted a video showing a gladiator with Trump’s face sword fighting with and kicking a warrior with Kamala Harris’ face. NBC News reported the video’s creator appears to be aligned with neo-Nazism.

The Washington Post reported Oct. 29: “The top political accounts on X have seen their audiences crumble in the months before the election, a signal of the platform’s diminishing influence and usefulness to political discourse under billionaire owner Elon Musk. … Politicians on both sides of the aisle have struggled to win the attention they once enjoyed on the platform formerly known as Twitter, according to The Post’s review of months of data for the 100 top-tweeting congressional accounts, including senators, representatives and committees, equal parts Democrat and Republican.

“But some of their tweets are still going mega-viral — virtually all of them from Republicans, the analysis shows. The Republicans have also seen huge spikes in follower counts over the Democrats, and their tweets have collectively received billions more views.”

Southern Baptist Dwight McKissic posts almost daily on X and is a supporter of Harris for president. On Oct. 28, he retweeted a post by Heath Mayo, a conservative attorney who leads a nonprofit called Principles First.

Mayo called out the blatant racism at Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally: “This is a disgrace to our country and the Republican Party. For featured remarks in this type of moment, the Trump-Vance campaign would have read these remarks and would’ve known exactly what was going to be said — and they let him say this nastiness anyway. And none of the speakers after him apologized or corrected the record or pushed back on his remarks. It isn’t Christian. It isn’t American. It isn’t decent. It’s ugly and racist. Period.”

McKissic commended Mayo and said other evangelical leaders are noticeable in their silent assent to what transpired at the New York rally. That tweet drew largely affirmative comments, acknowledging the reality that virtually no evangelical leaders spoke publicly about the racism and lies of the Trump rally.

The same day, McKissic commented on X about “Dixie” — an homage to the Confederacy and slavery — being played at the rally right before a Black speaker took the stage: “Playing Dixie belongs in a Klan Rally, not in a Republican presidential rally. This would have never happened at a Democrat presidential rally. And to play it just before a Black speaker comes to the podium suggests ignorance and insensitivity at best, or malicious racism & celebration of the confederacy, slavery and the antebellum south.”

That post drew only one comment and 2,111 views. In the world of X, it was barely seen. McKissic’s other post from the same day generated 18,000 views, by comparison.

Some of the most vile commentary on X related to the election occurred the day before, on Oct. 27, when clergy sexual abuse survivor advocate Christa Brown retweeted a video clip of Liz Cheney saying in 2022, “I say this to my Republican colleagues who are defending the indefensible: There will come a day when Donald Trump is gone, but your dishonor will remain.”

Brown added: “Dear white evangelicals: There will come a day when Donald Trump is gone, but your dishonor will remain.”

Brown got 292 comments, the majority of which were personal attacks on what she said or on her physical appearance. For example:

• “Liz Cheney is a demon. Christa Brown is a demon. Their dishonor is forever.”
• “You post this like we should give a shit what you or Liz Cheney thinks.”
• “There will come a day when Liz will be in trial for treason because she hates Trump so much.”
• “Only the blind can’t see that God miraculously protected Donald Trump twice so that God can carry out His work through him in restoring America.”
• “So I should listen to Liz Cheney, a war mongering Neo con and vote for the most far left senator in American history? Put your husband on right now, maam.”
• “I’m just looking forward to the day when batshit crazy white women like you and Cheney will stop nagging us men.”

 

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The dubious ethics of Christian Twitter | Opinion by David Gushee

What will Twitter’s $44 billion purchase do to theological discourse? | Analysis by Rick Pidcock

Assessing the damage Twitter has done to American Christianity | Opinion by Mark Wingfield