Barton won't let FA censor him

Barton won't let FA censor him

Published Oct. 18, 2011 3:15 a.m. ET

Barton claimed on Monday that the FA had tried to get him to moderate his language on the social networking website - but insisted he had no intention of doing so. The 29-year-old, who held a recent meeting with the English game's governing body, told the Professional Players Federation national conference: "I feel that the FA came to hush me down or make me not have an opinion. "If they came to do that, they picked the wrong person, because there's no way I can be like that. "If I didn't have an opinion, I'd cease to exist." Barton, who has become one of the biggest football personalities on Twitter, added: "If I was to go out and pass comment and say, 'Everyone join this bondage club', then I think we would have an issue. "But I'm going on there to have an extension of me. "It sounds really bad when you say it because it just makes you think of Nazi Germany but it is a propaganda machine. "Social media is a propaganda machine." Barton entirely lived up to his reputation for brutal honesty on Monday with attacks on Ryan Giggs and John Terry. Despite sharing a stage with four other speakers, the midfielder completely dominated the discussion, spouting forth views on matters such as the right to privacy, social media, the Royal Family, the London riots, MPs expenses, and the Hillsborough disaster. But his comments on fellow professionals Giggs and Terry were among the most inflammatory. The midfielder hit out at Manchester United star Giggs' alleged affair with his own sister-in-law, saying: "The Giggs issue in any walk of life is not right. "The behaviour of the man towards another man, towards his brother, it's not right, regardless of the player." Barton also questioned Giggs' response to his name becoming public on the internet after an injunction was granted preventing it being published by traditional media. "What blew it up for Giggs was when he threatened to sue Twitter - bad legal advice," Barton said. "I don't think anybody in the world's got the kind of money to get that case through. "Everyone on Twitter got defensive about their right to freedom of speech." Barton was equally critical of England captain Terry, who allegedly had an affair with the former partner of then international team-mate Wayne Bridge. The midfielder said: "There was a human element then about, as a man, what you should do either to your friend at work or one of your colleagues. "It shouldn't have happened."

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