The alternative social media network that was reportedly used by the suspect in the deadly shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue is now down.
Gab.com is a social network that touts itself as an alternative to Twitter and Facebook to give conservatives a platform for free speech. But it also has been criticized for providing a platform for anti-Semitism and white nationalism. The site has come in for increased scrutiny since the shooting.
As of Monday, the site displayed a message saying it had been “systematically no-platformed by App Stores, multiple hosting providers, and several payment processors.”
“We have been smeared by the mainstream media for defending free expression and individual liberty for all people and for working with law enforcement to ensure that justice is served for the horrible atrocity committed at Pittsburgh,” it said.
The platform’s future is newly in doubt because an account linked to Robert Bowers, the 46-year-old Pittsburgh resident charged in the shootings, wrote on Gab Saturday morning: “HIAS likes to bring invaders in that kill our people. I can’t sit by and watch my people get slaughtered. Screw your optics, I’m going in.” HIAS is a Jewish nonprofit that has the goal of helping immigrant refugees.