X’s Payment Partner Stripe Demonetises African Stream Account Amid Meta Ban

African Stream, a prominent pan-African digital media organisation, is facing demonetisation on X (formerly known as Twitter), facilitated through the payment partner Stripe. This is days after social media company Meta banned it across all its platforms.

The suspension follows days after U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken announced sanctions against non-Western-aligned media outlets, including Russia’s state broadcaster RT, which he accused of operating under Russian influence.

African Stream, in a post on X, speculates that its critical stance on international geopolitics, particularly its unwavering opposition to settler colonialism, may have made it a target of these actions.

The organisation publicly questioned whether X’s owner, Elon Musk, allowed this demonetisation due to the media outlet’s outspoken criticism of Western foreign policy.

African Stream, which had amassed a cumulative following of over 1 million on Meta-owned platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, and Threads, found its accounts suspended across the board. A day earlier, its YouTube account had been taken down, effectively muting its digital presence across the most popular platforms.

Prior to the suspensions, African Stream had gained attention for its coverage of controversial issues such as settler colonialism in South Africa and Israel, challenging Western narratives on African and global affairs.

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