Claim: Top College Questioned Applicant for Following Alex Jones on Twitter

The Associated Press
The Associated Press

A social media attorney named Bradley Shear is claiming that an applicant was questioned by a top college over his decision to follow Alex Jones on Twitter.

Shear wrote in a blog post that a c17-year-old client of his was questioned by an admissions officer at a top college because he followed Infowars host Alex Jones on Twitter.

While one of my legal clients (a 17 year old teen) was being interviewed by one of the most competitive colleges in the country he was asked why he was following Alex Jones on Twitter. My client, a teenager expected to talk about his stellar grades, top test scores, amazing extracurricular activities and volunteer work, but the interviewer focused on who he was connecting with online. My client had never “liked” or re-tweeted any of Mr. Jones’ content. His alleged “transgression” was that he followed Mr. Jones on Twitter. That was it.

Shear goes on to explain that he is not a supporter of Alex Jones or his Infowars productions. However, he adds that students should be free to follow whomever they please online without fearing that it will impact their college admissions changes. Additionally, it is not entirely clear that the student in question was even a support of Alex Jones or Infowars. He merely followed him on Twitter, just as many critics of President Trump make sure to follow his account.

While I am not a listener or supporter of Mr. Jones’, his audience has every right to watch his videos and listen to him and connect with him online. Unfortunately, some college admissions officials believe that applicants who connect with him online regardless of whether they believe Mr. Jones’ theories should not be provided an opportunity the country’s best higher education institutions.

Alex Jones and his website Infowars were in the news this week after they were banned from major social media platforms including YouTube and Facebook.

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