In a line that only proves that cyberpunk dystopia is real, the U.S. Army has been reprimanded by Twitch for conducting fake sweepstakes on its broadcast channel. After criticism for banning viewers who breed the history of the war crimes service, Twitch has now forced the U.S. Army Esports Team.
Let’s be frank: The presence of the US Army on Twitch is a recruiting tactic in itself. Friendly military folks get on a game like Call Of Duty: Warzone, hang out with the chat, maybe let some words go by about how big the Army has been for them. It is a new terrain for the service to connect with impressionable young people, one that takes advantage of the parasocial relationships between the viewer and the transmitter as a way to sell military service.
This week, The Nation reported on an aspect of their recruiting campaign that was a little bit less, well, subtle. The Army was reportedly offering gifts on its chat channel, offering viewers the opportunity to snag an Xbox Elite Series 2 gamepad. However, when hopeful viewers clicked on the link, they were greeted by a page “sparingly populated “that made little or no mention of the award. Instead, they were asked to “Register to Win” with a form that, according to the fine print, allowed an Army recruiter to contact them at a later date.
Speaking to Kotaku, a Twitch spokesperson said the Army was told to stop this practice immediately. “Under our Terms of Service, promotions on Twitch must comply with all applicable laws,” the spokesperson told Kotaku, via email. “This promotion did not meet our Terms, and we have required them to remove it.”
This is not the first time that the broadcast practices of the US Army have been threatened. Shortly after launching the channel, it was discovered that they were aggressively banning viewers who raised the US Army’s war crime story.
“Calling government war crimes is not harassment, that is, the truth to power,” the ACLU said on Twitter. “Banning users who ask important questions is not ‘flexing’, it is unconstitutional.”
At one point, Twitch’s actions could also be read as “telling the truth to power,” particularly in the wake of Donald Trump’s suspension of the channel for hateful behavior. But it is worth noting that the military has a close relationship with the platform. Kotaku goes on to explain that the US military is an official sponsor of the e-sports brand Twitch Rivals, with commentators who will “periodically yell” at the Army in the current.
Twitch might not mind that the Army uses its platform as a recruiting base. They’ll just ask you to be a little less rude about the whole thing.
