Rules of Engagement: WashPost, Lorenz Dox Identity of Libs Of TikTok

April 19th, 2022 3:57 PM

UPDATE 4/19/2022 7:33 p.m.: The Washington Post has put out a statement defending their doxxing of Libs Of TikTok and lying about what information they exposed. You can read NewsBusters' report on it here.

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If you dare to expose the lunatics, groomers, and general extremists of the left (particularly those exposing it to kids) via the videos they themselves put out, The Washington Post and hypocritical malefactor Taylor Lorenz have declared Tuesday it’s okay to run down them, their family, and those on the periphery in an attempt to open them up to retaliation and life-threatening danger. They’ve effectively set the rules of engagement in the culture war in targeting and doxxing @LibsOfTikTok.

In a totally serious segment for MSNBC on April Fools’ Day, Lorenz cried crocodile tears about how she lived in fear of information about her getting on the internet. “You feel like any little piece of information that gets out on you will be used by the worst people on the internet to destroy your life and it's so isolating,” she said, claims she has “PTSD” and had “contemplated suicide.”

 

 

But that’s exactly what she wanted to happen to Libs Of TikTok account owner Chaya Raichik when she and The Post outed her identity to the world in a piece titled, “Meet the woman behind Libs of TikTok, secretly fueling the right’s outrage machine.” A piece packed with quotes from leftists from the ACLU and Media Matters who were eager to spit venom.

Never addressing the content of the video’s Libs Of TikTok shares, Lorenz declared: “A popular Twitter account has morphed into a social media phenomenon, spreading anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment and shaping public discourse.”

The content shared by the account is just reposts of videos put out by the liberal teachers and activists themselves. The videos have illustrated how their enthusiastic subversion of parents and intense indoctrination of gender and political ideology. Essentially, it's provided examples of why Florida’s Parental Rights in Education bill was needed.

But Lorenz takes issue with the truth being exposed to the world and frames it as just stoking “outrage” for the sake if the “right-wing” “machine”:

Libs of TikTok reposts a steady stream of TikTok videos and social media posts, primarily from LGBTQ+ people, often including incendiary framing designed to generate outrage. Videos shared from the account quickly find their way to the most influential names in right-wing media. The account has emerged as a powerful force on the Internet, shaping right-wing media, impacting anti-LGBTQ+ legislation and influencing millions by posting viral videos aimed at inciting outrage among the right.

Despite some of the videos featuring teachers who brag about telling kids to lie to their parents about what they’re exposed to in the classroom, Lorenz decried how “Her anti-trans tweets went especially viral. She called on her followers to contact schools…”

“She also purported that adults who teach children about LGBTQ+ identities are ‘abusive,’ that being gender-nonconforming or an ally to the LGBTQ+ community is a ‘mental illness,’ and referred to schools as 'government run indoctrination camps' for the LGBTQ+ community,” Lorenz raged.

Lorenz was out to demonize Libs Of TikTok and make an example of anyone even vaguely in the same orbit. Libs Of TikTok shared a Twitter message she received from an account with a similar name as her real one, in which Lorenz threatened to ruin their life if they don’t respond to her message. “You’ve been mentioned as the administrator of the ‘Libs of TikTok’ account … you’re being implicated as starting a hate campaign against LGBTQ people…” she wrote.

 

 

In her article, Lorenz bragged about having tracked down Raichik’s line of work, her home, and harassed her family:

When a reporter called the phone number registered to Raichik’s real estate profile and LibofTikTok.us, the woman who answered hung up after the reporter identified herself as calling from The Washington Post. A woman at the address listed to Raichik’s name in Los Angeles declined to identify herself. On Monday night, a tweet from Glenn Greenwald confirmed the house that was visited belonged to Raichik’s family.

LibsOfTikTok also shared an image a relative took of Lorenz harassing them at their home too:

 

 

Lorenz even targeted those who interacted with the account, specifically the press secretary to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R), Christina Pushaw. In her request for comment, Lorenz touted how it was for “a story exposing the woman behind the ‘Libs of TikTok’ account,” and only gave an “hour” to respond.

 

 

Unironically, and without evidence, Lorenz tied the “popularity of Libs of TikTok” to purported doxing and execution calls of school officials. She also lamented the “chilling effect” caused by just reposting the videos that are already out there.

Libs Of TikTok seemed to have gone into hiding after Lorenz’s doxing. “Thankfully I’m currently holed up in a safe location. I’m confident we will get through this and come out even stronger,” she tweeted. “Words cannot express how appreciative I am of the support I’m receiving right now … Grateful for all the thoughts and prayers[.]”