Global InformationDecember 2022 Twitter suspensions information
 Three journalists suspended on Twitter[1] | |
| Date | December 15, 2022 |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| Also known as | Twitter journalist purge |
| Type | Account suspensions |
| Theme | Twitter censorship |
| Cause | Twitter Safety policy change |
| Motive | Doxxing response |
| Target | Journalists |
| Perpetrator | Elon Musk |
| Organised by | Elon Musk and Twitter |
| Outcome | ElonJet and 10 journalists suspended including Steven L. Herman, Donie O'Sullivan, Linette Lopez and Keith Olbermann |
On December 15, 2022, Twitter suspended the accounts of ten journalists who have covered the company and its owner, Elon Musk. They included reporters Keith Olbermann, Steven L. Herman, and Donie O'Sullivan, and journalists from The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN, and The Intercept.[2][3][4][5] Musk cited an incident between "a crazy stalker" and a car with his child as a justification for the suspensions.[6] Posters on behalf of the owners of the accounts said that the suspensions were permanent.[2][3][5] On December 16, 2022 Musk stated that account access would only be restricted for seven days[2][3][5] and on December 17, 2022 some accounts were reportedly restored with Musk citing Twitter community polls as the reason for the reversal. [7][8]
Twitter officials initially offered no explanation for their decision.[2] They later stated it was due to violations of a new rule, created one day before the bans took place. The policy change prohibited accounts from sharing real-time flight information of private jets.[2][3][9] The bans were allegedly in response to the @ElonJet account, which tracks Musk's private jet. The account and other similar accounts were suspended from Twitter on December 14, 2022, but continued operating on Facebook, Mastodon, and other social media platforms.[3][10][11]
Several of the suspended journalists said they had not violated the rule, and while some had included links to @ElonJet in their articles or reported about the account, it was already suspended at the time of media reports.[2][4][5] The Twitter account of Mastodon – a rival social-media platform – was also suspended on December 15 after linking to @ElonJet on a Mastodon server.[5] Users were unable to share Mastodon links in their tweets[3] and they were labeled as "potentially harmful" and containing "malware".[12][13]
The suspensions drew criticism from various organizations and individuals.[2][14] Some said the actions undermined Musk's repeated claims of supporting free speech on Twitter, while others said Musk had a history of doxxing and harassing people in similar ways, which he was now criticizing.[2][15] The suspensions were condemned by representatives of several countries and organizations, including the United Nations and the European Union.[14][16] EU officials said the actions may have violated the Digital Services Act, which could result in sanctions or even a ban of Twitter in Europe.[4][17] The Government Accountability Project filed a complaint to the United States Congress regarding the suspensions.[18]
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
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Johnson1216was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ a b c d e Massie, Graeme (December 16, 2022). "Twitter suspends liberal journalist Aaron Rupar and CNN, NYT and Washington Post reporters". The Independent. Archived from the original on December 16, 2022. Retrieved December 16, 2022.
- ^ Beckett, Lois (December 20, 2022). "Police provide first official details of Elon Musk's alleged stalker incident". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved April 13, 2024.
- ^ Dang, Sheila (December 17, 2022). "Elon Musk restores Twitter accounts of journalists but concerns persist". Reuters. Archived from the original on December 16, 2022. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
- ^ Barr, Jeremy Barr; Ellison, Sarah (December 17, 2022). "Musk unsuspends some reporters on Twitter. But their companies never left". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on December 18, 2022. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
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OSullivan1214was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Peters, Jay (December 16, 2022). "Twitter is blocking links to Mastodon". The Verge. Archived from the original on December 21, 2022. Retrieved January 3, 2023.
- ^ Fung, Brian (December 16, 2022). "Elon Musk's Twitter blocked links to rival Mastodon. That could raise alarms among regulators". CNN. Archived from the original on December 30, 2022. Retrieved January 3, 2023.
- ^ a b Cite error: The named reference
Dang1216was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cite error: The named reference
Kim1218was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Warner, Bernhard (December 16, 2022). "Musk Faces Growing Anger Over Twitter Ban of Journalists". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 17, 2022. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
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