Twitter ends enforcement of COVID misinformation policy
2 years ago

Twitter ends enforcement of COVID misinformation policy

Associated Press  

Twitter will no longer enforce its policy against COVID-19 misinformation, raising concerns among public health experts and social media researchers that the change could have serious consequences if it discourages vaccination and other efforts to combat the still-spreading virus. Eagle-eyed users spotted the change Monday night, noting that a one-sentence update had been made to Twitter’s online rules: “Effective November 23, 2022, Twitter is no longer enforcing the COVID-19 misleading information policy.” By Tuesday, some Twitter accounts were testing the new boundaries and celebrating the platform’s hands-off approach, which comes after Twitter was purchased by Elon Musk. “Stay folks — do NOT cede the town square to them!” While Twitter’s efforts to stop false claims about COVID weren’t perfect, the company’s decision to reverse course is an abdication of its duty to its users, said Paul Russo, a social media researcher and dean of the Katz School of Science and Health at Yeshiva University in New York. He’s also reinstated the accounts for several people who spread COVID misinformation, including that of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, whose personal account was suspended this year for repeatedly violating Twitter’s COVID rules. Dr. Ashish Jha, the White House COVID-19 coordinator, said Tuesday that the problem of COVID-19 misinformation is far larger than one platform, and that policies prohibiting COVID misinformation weren’t the best solution anyway.

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History of this topic

White House pressured Facebook over some COVID-19 content during the pandemic, Zuckerberg says
3 months, 3 weeks ago

White House pressured Facebook over some COVID-19 content during the pandemic, Zuckerberg says

LA Times  

Meta Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg testifies before a joint hearing of the Commerce and Judiciary committees on Capitol Hill in Washington in 2018. Meta Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg says senior Biden administration officials pressured Facebook to “censor” some COVID-19 content during the pandemic and vowed that the social media giant would push back if it faced such demands again. In …

Revealed: Jack Smith got search warrant for Trump's Twitter account
1 year, 4 months ago

Revealed: Jack Smith got search warrant for Trump's Twitter account

Raw Story  

Special counsel Jack Smith earlier this year sought and then received a search warrant for former President Donald Trump's Twitter account. "Twitter complained that the order violated the First Amendment and that the federal judge overseeing the matter at the time — U.S. District Court Judge Beryl Howell — should have blocked enforcement of the search warrant until the objection …

'BEWARE of Twitter': Report tags platform as the worst major social media platform for LGBTQ+ community
1 year, 6 months ago

'BEWARE of Twitter': Report tags platform as the worst major social media platform for LGBTQ+ community

India TV News  

All major social media platforms do poorly at protecting LGBTQ+ users from hate speech and harassment — especially those who are transgender, non-binary or gender non-conforming, the advocacy group GLAAD said Thursday. In its annual Social Media Safety Index, GLAAD gave Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and Twitter low or failing scores, saying the platforms don’t do enough to keep their …

Twitter Really Is Worse Than Ever
1 year, 7 months ago

Twitter Really Is Worse Than Ever

Wired  

A year ago, Elon Musk announced that he wanted to buy Twitter to clear it of bots and turn “the de facto public town square” into a place for unfettered free speech. After he took over the platform, Musk insisted that “Twitter’s strong commitment to content moderation remains absolutely unchanged.” But around the same time, Twitter fired most of its …

Twitter Warned By EU Over Disinformation, Favouring Russia Agenda
1 year, 7 months ago

Twitter Warned By EU Over Disinformation, Favouring Russia Agenda

ABP News  

According to a recent tweet by Vera Jourova, Vice-President for Values and Transparency at the EU, the EU has issued a warning to Elon Musk's Twitter over the spread of disinformation and promotion of the Kremlin agenda. Jourova expressed her concern that Twitter's policies have made the digital information space unsafe and susceptible to malicious influence from authoritarian governments. Jourova …

Twitter restricts Marjorie Taylor Greene account over 'Vengeance' post
1 year, 8 months ago

Twitter restricts Marjorie Taylor Greene account over 'Vengeance' post

The Hindu  

Twitter has temporarily restricted Marjorie Taylor Greene's congressional account after the U.S. lawmaker tweeted a graphic that referred to a "Trans Day of Vengeance" following the school shooting in Nashville. Ms. Greene, a member of the House of Representatives, posted a screenshot of the notice on her personal account on Tuesday which said some of her congressional account's features were …

Chinese paper Global Times lashes out at Elon Musk over Covid origin theory
1 year, 9 months ago

Chinese paper Global Times lashes out at Elon Musk over Covid origin theory

The Independent  

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors …

Twitter scrambles to fix meltdown as many unable to tweet
1 year, 10 months ago

Twitter scrambles to fix meltdown as many unable to tweet

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Users first noticed the problem …

‘I felt true rage’: How anti-vaxxers hijacked the story of Claire Bridges who lost her legs from Covid complications
1 year, 10 months ago

‘I felt true rage’: How anti-vaxxers hijacked the story of Claire Bridges who lost her legs from Covid complications

The Independent  

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors …

Twitter says users will be able to appeal account suspension
1 year, 10 months ago

Twitter says users will be able to appeal account suspension

The Hindu  

Twitter users will be able to appeal account suspensions and be evaluated under the social media platform's new criteria for reinstatement, starting Feb. 1, the company said on Friday. Under the new criteria, which follow billionaire Elon Musk's purchase of the company in October, Twitter accounts will only be suspended for severe or ongoing and repeat violations of the platform's …

Climate misinformation skyrockets on Elon Musk's Twitter
1 year, 11 months ago

Climate misinformation skyrockets on Elon Musk's Twitter

India Today  

Search for the word “climate” on Twitter and the first automatic recommendation isn’t “climate crisis” or “climate jobs” or even “climate change” but instead “climate scam.” Clicking on the recommendation yields dozens of posts denying the reality of climate change and making misleading claims about efforts to mitigate it. “It plants those seeds of doubt and makes people think maybe …

Climate misinformation ‘rocket boosters’ on Musk’s Twitter
1 year, 11 months ago

Climate misinformation ‘rocket boosters’ on Musk’s Twitter

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — Search for the word “climate” on Twitter and the first automatic recommendation isn’t “climate crisis” or “climate jobs” or even “climate change” but instead “climate scam.” Clicking on the recommendation yields dozens of posts denying the reality of climate change and making misleading claims about efforts to mitigate it. “It plants those seeds of doubt and makes people …

Elon Musk Turns Over Twitter Records To Key Source Of COVID Misinformation
1 year, 11 months ago

Elon Musk Turns Over Twitter Records To Key Source Of COVID Misinformation

Huff Post  

LOADING ERROR LOADING Twitter owner Elon Musk turned over access to internal company documents to a top source of vaccine misinformation who’s been giving out bunk public health advice for years, the latest in a far-right shift on one of the most influential social media sites in the world. Alex Berenson, a former New York Times reporter — whom The …

Twitter Files: Elon Musk says US govt agencies demanded suspension of over 250k accounts
1 year, 11 months ago

Twitter Files: Elon Musk says US govt agencies demanded suspension of over 250k accounts

Firstpost  

San Francisco: Elon Musk, in the latest set of revelations under ‘Twitter Files’, claimed that the US government agencies had asked the microblogging site to suspend more than 250,000 accounts. Commenting on Twitter thread of journalist Matt Taibbi, Musk wrote: “US government agency demanded suspension of 250k accounts, including journalists & Canadian officials!” The request to suspend Twitter accounts of …

US demanded suspension of 250k Twitter accounts, including journalists: Musk
1 year, 11 months ago

US demanded suspension of 250k Twitter accounts, including journalists: Musk

Deccan Chronicle  

Washington: Twitter chief Elon Musk on Tuesday disclosed that US Government demanded the suspension of 250k Twitter accounts, including those belonging to journalists and Canadian officials, reported Fox News. "US govt agency demanded suspension of 250k accounts, including journalists & Canadian officials!" However, Twitter's subsequent task force to hunt Russian influence on the platform showed "no coordinated" effort and mostly …

Elon Musk stoked a storm of homophobic harassment with false claims about Twitter’s former head of safety
1 year, 11 months ago

Elon Musk stoked a storm of homophobic harassment with false claims about Twitter’s former head of safety

The Independent  

Sign up to our free weekly IndyTech newsletter delivered straight to your inbox Sign up to our free IndyTech newsletter Sign up to our free IndyTech newsletter SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. That did not stop Twitter users from targeting Roth with a flood of homophobic abuse, false accusations, …

Journalist suspensions widen rift between Twitter and media
2 years ago

Journalist suspensions widen rift between Twitter and media

Associated Press  

Elon Musk’s abrupt suspension of several journalists who cover Twitter widens a growing rift between the social media site and media organizations that have used the platform to build their audiences. That address is not current, Lopez said, because “he changes his email every few weeks.” Sound of exchange as Twitter owner Elon Musk joins Twitter Spaces conference chat Thursday …

Why did the FBI not flag Antifa Twitter accounts? Elon Musk finally removes far-left profiles
2 years ago

Why did the FBI not flag Antifa Twitter accounts? Elon Musk finally removes far-left profiles

Daily Mail  

The Colorado group - which had 15,000 followers- is one of several far-left profiles scrubbed in the past week, several allegedly belonging to the The Twitter account for a Colorado-based Antifa group has been suspended - less than a month after the platform's new owner Elon Musk promised to purge all accounts that incite violence. Ngo, an editor for The …

Journalist suspensions widen rift between Twitter and media
2 years ago

Journalist suspensions widen rift between Twitter and media

Live Mint  

Elon Musk's abrupt suspension of several journalists who cover Twitter widens a growing rift between the social media site and media organizations that have used the platform to build their audiences. But Musk took to Twitter on Thursday night to accuse journalists of sharing private information about his whereabouts, which he described as “basically assassination coordinates.” He provided no evidence …

'The People Have Spoken': Twitter To Restore Suspended Accounts Of Journalists After 59% Vote In Favour
2 years ago

'The People Have Spoken': Twitter To Restore Suspended Accounts Of Journalists After 59% Vote In Favour

ABP News  

New Delhi: Twitter chief Elon Musk on Saturday announced that the microblogging platform will reverse the suspension on accounts of several high-profile journalists who he accused of "doxxing" him. Twitter abruptly suspended the accounts of several high-profile journalists who cover the social media platform and Elon Musk. https://t.co/MFdXbEQFCe — Elon Musk December 17, 2022 After being suspended on the microblogging …

Journalist suspensions widen rift between Twitter and media
2 years ago

Journalist suspensions widen rift between Twitter and media

The Hindu  

Elon Musk's abrupt suspension of several journalists who cover Twitter widens a growing rift between the social media site and media organisations that have used the platform to build their audiences. But Musk took to Twitter on Thursday night to accuse journalists of sharing private information about his whereabouts, which he described as “basically assassination coordinates.” He provided no evidence …

Elon Musk restores Twitter accounts of journalists after suspensions draw backlash
2 years ago

Elon Musk restores Twitter accounts of journalists after suspensions draw backlash

The Hindu  

Elon Musk reinstated the Twitter accounts of several journalists that were suspended for a day over a controversy on publishing public data about the billionaire's plane. https://t.co/MFdXbEQFCe — Elon Musk December 17, 2022 A Twitter poll that Mr. Musk conducted later also showed that a majority of the respondents wanted the accounts restored immediately. ElonJet The suspensions stemmed from a …

Inspiring to see…: Elon Musk reacts to press criticism after ban on journalists
2 years ago

Inspiring to see…: Elon Musk reacts to press criticism after ban on journalists

Live Mint  

Twitter CEO Elon Musk has responded to the accusation he has been getting after the company suspended accounts of roughly half a dozen prominent journalists. Twitter suspended accounts of roughly half a dozen prominent journalists, who have been covering the social media site and Musk, citing they had violated rules against "doxxing." The European Union has warned Elon Musk that …

Elon Musk reacts to press criticism on his move to ban 'journalists' on Twitter
2 years ago

Elon Musk reacts to press criticism on his move to ban 'journalists' on Twitter

India TV News  

Journalists ban on twitter : The CEO of Twitter hasn't held back on responding to accusations of him hampering the microblogging site's 'freedom of speech'. Twitter recently suspended accounts of roughly half a dozen prominent journalists, who have been covering the social media site and Musk, citing they had violated rules against "doxxing." The suspended accounts include those of Ryan …

'The people have spoken...': Elon Musk reinstates journalists' suspended Twitter accounts following criticism
2 years ago

'The people have spoken...': Elon Musk reinstates journalists' suspended Twitter accounts following criticism

India TV News  

Twitter News: In a latest development, Elon Musk on Saturday lifted the suspension of the Twitter accounts of several journalists that were banned by him earlier. According to media reports, Musk polled users for 24 hours to determine whether the accounts should be restored "immediately" or in "7 days. Musk said the account was stopped for a "physical safety violation" …

Twitter suspends journalists who wrote about owner Elon Musk
2 years ago

Twitter suspends journalists who wrote about owner Elon Musk

The Independent  

Twitter suspended the accounts of several journalists who cover the social media platform, the latest battle over what can and cannot be said on the site since billionaire Elon Musk took control of it. The suspension “directly undermines Elon Musk’s claim that he intends to run Twitter as a platform dedicated to free speech,” Buzbee wrote. “We have asked Twitter …

Twitter bans journalists: European Union turns up the heat on Elon Musk
2 years ago

Twitter bans journalists: European Union turns up the heat on Elon Musk

Live Mint  

Senior European politicians has started to up the ante against Elon Musk following the suspension of journalists from Twitter with threats of future sanctions and lawmakers leaving the platform. And sanctions, soon.” Jourova — one of the EU’s more senior officials — cited the Digital Services Act and the Media Freedom Act, two major pillars of European tech regulation European …

Twitter suspends journalists who wrote about owner Elon Musk
2 years ago

Twitter suspends journalists who wrote about owner Elon Musk

Associated Press  

Twitter on Thursday suspended the accounts of journalists who cover the social media platform and its new owner Elon Musk, among them reporters working for The New York Times, Washington Post, CNN, Voice of America and other publications. The suspension “directly undermines Elon Musk’s claim that he intends to run Twitter as a platform dedicated to free speech,” Buzbee wrote. …

Prominent liberal journalist Aaron Rupar suspended by Twitter
2 years ago

Prominent liberal journalist Aaron Rupar suspended by Twitter

The Independent  

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors …

Twitter accounts of journalists who wrote about Elon Musk suspended
2 years ago

Twitter accounts of journalists who wrote about Elon Musk suspended

The Hindu  

Twitter on December 15 suspended the accounts of journalists who cover the social media platform and its new owner Elon Musk, including reporters working for The New York Times, Washington Post, CNN and other publications. The sudden suspension of news reporters followed Mr. Musk’s decision to permanently ban an account that automatically tracked the flights of his private jet using …

Twitter suspends accounts of journalists covering Elon Musk, Check list here
2 years ago

Twitter suspends accounts of journalists covering Elon Musk, Check list here

Live Mint  

Twitter has suspended the accounts of several journalists who have been covering new Twit Chief Elon Musk after he acquired the microblogging outlet in October and that of upstart rival service Mastodon, according to Bloomberg News. The company also suspended the feed of the social media site Mastodon which earlier had posted a link on its Twitter page to an …

Twitter suspends journalists who wrote about Elon Musk
2 years ago

Twitter suspends journalists who wrote about Elon Musk

India TV News  

Twitter news: Twitter suspended the accounts of journalists who cover the social media platform and its new owner Elon Musk, among them reporters working for The New York Times, Washington Post, CNN, Voice of America and other publications. The suspension “directly undermines Elon Musk’s claim that he intends to run Twitter as a platform dedicated to free speech,” Buzbee wrote. …

Twitter suspends several journalists who shared information about Musk's jet
2 years ago

Twitter suspends several journalists who shared information about Musk's jet

NPR  

Twitter suspends several journalists who shared information about Musk's jet Enlarge this image toggle caption Susan Walsh/AP Susan Walsh/AP Press freedom advocates on Thursday criticized Twitter owner Elon Musk, who has suspended the accounts of several high-profile journalists who cover the billionaire and his chaotic leadership of the social media site. Musk took the highly unusual move of booting journalists …

Twitter Files Part 5 reveals not all staffers believed Trump violated 'incitement' policy
2 years ago

Twitter Files Part 5 reveals not all staffers believed Trump violated 'incitement' policy

Firstpost  

The fifth installment of Elon Musk’s Twitter Files revealed that staffers believed that tweets written by Trump around the events of 6 January, 2021, had were not really in violation of policies despite the company saying it was at that time New York: The fifth installment of Elon Musk’s Twitter Files revealed that staffers believed that tweets written by former …

Freedom of speech much? Elon Musk makes Twitter shadowban account that tracked his private jets
2 years ago

Freedom of speech much? Elon Musk makes Twitter shadowban account that tracked his private jets

Firstpost  

Elon Musk had previously stated that Twitter will never shadowban any account, just the problematic content that it posts, and will only ban accounts if things go too far. The popular Twitter handle, ElonJet, which tracked the movement of Elon Musk’s private jets has apparently been given a shadowban by Twitter upon Elon Musk’s insistence and is being algorithmically pushed …

Former top Twitter official flees home over threats in wake of Elon Musk's criticism: report
2 years ago

Former top Twitter official flees home over threats in wake of Elon Musk's criticism: report

Raw Story  

The former head of trust and safety at Twitter has fled his home after an alleged escalation of threats against after Elon Musk criticized him on the platform, CNN reports. "Yoel Roth, who resigned from the social media company in November, has in recent weeks faced a storm of attacks and threats of violence following the release of the so-called …

Twitter to introduce new controls for ad placements
2 years ago

Twitter to introduce new controls for ad placements

The Hindu  

Twitter Inc. will roll out new controls as soon as next week to let companies prevent their ads from appearing above or below tweets containing certain keywords, the social media platform told advertisers in an email on Thursday. The new controls are part of Twitter's effort to reassure and lure back advertisers that have pulled ads off the platform since …

Elon Musk says Trump didn’t violate Twitter’s rules. The truth is more complicated
2 years ago

Elon Musk says Trump didn’t violate Twitter’s rules. The truth is more complicated

CNN  

New York CNN — A series of internal Twitter documents shared on the social media platform Monday offer a glimpse into internal debates among some of the company’s employees ahead of its decision to ban then-President Donald Trump following the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol. A screenshot from an internal Twitter slack conversation, where employees’ names have …

Second Twitter files drop backfires on Elon Musk
2 years ago

Second Twitter files drop backfires on Elon Musk

The Independent  

Sign up to our free weekly IndyTech newsletter delivered straight to your inbox Sign up to our free IndyTech newsletter Sign up to our free IndyTech newsletter SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy A second edition of the “Twitter Files” claimed to reveal that the company …

E.U. Warns Musk To Beef Up Twitter Controls Ahead Of New Rules
2 years ago

E.U. Warns Musk To Beef Up Twitter Controls Ahead Of New Rules

Huff Post  

LOADING ERROR LOADING LONDON — A top European Union official warned Elon Musk on Wednesday that Twitter needs to beef up measures to protect users from hate speech, misinformation and other harmful content to avoid violating new rules that threaten tech giants with big fines or even a ban in the 27-nation bloc. Breton warned Elon Musk on Wednesday Nov. …

EU warns Musk to beef up Twitter controls ahead of new rules
2 years ago

EU warns Musk to beef up Twitter controls ahead of new rules

Associated Press  

LONDON — A top European Union official warned Elon Musk on Wednesday that Twitter needs to beef up measures to protect users from hate speech, misinformation and other harmful content to avoid violating new rules that threaten tech giants with big fines or even a ban in the 27-nation bloc. “Twitter will have to implement transparent user policies, significantly reinforce …

European Union warns Elon Musk to beef up Twitter controls ahead of new rules
2 years ago

European Union warns Elon Musk to beef up Twitter controls ahead of new rules

ABC  

A top European Union official has warned Elon Musk that Twitter needs to beef up its measures to protect users from harmful content, to avoid violating new rules that threaten tech giants with big fines or even a ban. Key points: The EU's Digital Services Act will require tech companies to better police their platforms US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen …

Twitter ends enforcement of COVID misinformation policy
2 years ago

Twitter ends enforcement of COVID misinformation policy

The Hindu  

Twitter will no longer enforce its policy against COVID-19 misinformation, raising concerns among public health experts that the change could have serious consequences if it discourages vaccination and other efforts to combat the still-spreading virus. Mr. Musk, who has himself spread COVID misinformation on Twitter, has signalled an interest in rolling back many of the platform's previous rules meant to …

Why Twitter is ditching its Prevention of COVID Misinformation policy now and shirking a “huge responsibility”
2 years ago

Why Twitter is ditching its Prevention of COVID Misinformation policy now and shirking a “huge responsibility”

Firstpost  

Twitter’s campaign to tackle COVID misinformation has been vital to suppress fake news. Much to the dismay of health experts and Twitter users, Elon Musk-led Twitter has announced that the platform will no longer be enforcing its Prevention of COVID Misinformation policy. “Effective November 23, 2022, Twitter is no longer enforcing the COVID-19 misleading information policy,” the social media platform …

Twitter bans enforcement of Covid misinformation policy, experts raise concerns
2 years ago

Twitter bans enforcement of Covid misinformation policy, experts raise concerns

India Today  

Twitter has stopped its Covid misinformation policy enforcement, raising concerns among health and media experts over the move’s effect on efforts to combat the still-spreading virus, like vaccination. Alert users spotted the change Monday night, figuring out that a one-sentence update had been made to Twitter’s online rules, “Effective November 23, 2022, Twitter is no longer enforcing the Covid-19 misleading …

Twitter ends enforcement of Covid misinformation policy
2 years ago

Twitter ends enforcement of Covid misinformation policy

India TV News  

Twitter will no longer enforce its policy against Covid misinformation, raising concerns among public health experts that the change could have serious consequences if it discourages vaccination and other efforts to combat the still-spreading virus. Eagle-eyed users spotted the change Monday night, noting that a one-sentence update had been made to Twitter's online rules: "Effective November 23, 2022, Twitter is …

Twitter rolls back COVID-19 misinformation policy as former safety head raises concerns
2 years ago

Twitter rolls back COVID-19 misinformation policy as former safety head raises concerns

ABC  

Twitter has rolled back a policy designed to tackle COVID-19 misinformation on the platform, and its former head of trust and safety has warned the company no longer has enough staff for safety work. Key points: Elon Musk took over Twitter on October 27 and moved quickly to initiate a number of changes to the platform and staffing Twitter's former …

Twitter ends enforcement of COVID misinformation policy
2 years ago

Twitter ends enforcement of COVID misinformation policy

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “A win for free speech and medical freedom!” Twitter's …

Twitter will no longer enforce its COVID misinformation policy
2 years ago

Twitter will no longer enforce its COVID misinformation policy

NPR  

Twitter will no longer enforce its COVID misinformation policy Enlarge this image Jeff Chiu/AP Jeff Chiu/AP Twitter will no longer enforce its policy against COVID-19 misinformation, raising concerns among public health experts and social media researchers that the change could have serious consequences if it discourages vaccination and other efforts to combat the still-spreading virus. Eagle-eyed users spotted the change …

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