WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. free speech group on Friday asked President Donald Trump to unblock 41 Twitter users after a federal judge in May ordered him to restore access to a group of individuals who filed suit. U.S. President Donald Trump participates in a roundtable discussion with state leaders on prison reform in Berkeley Heights, New Jersey, U.S., August 9, 2018. REUTERS/Carlos Barria U.S. District Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald in Manhattan ruled on May 23 that comments on the president’s account, and those of other government officials, were public forums and that blocking Twitter Inc users for their views violated their right to free speech under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University on Friday sent the Justice Department a list of 41 accounts that remain blocked from Trump’s @RealDonaldTrump account. The seven users who filed suit had their accounts unblocked in June. “As the … [Read more...] about Group asks Trump to unblock 41 Twitter users after court ruling
DNC serves WikiLeaks with lawsuit via Twitter
The Democratic National Committee on Friday officially served its lawsuit to WikiLeaks via Twitter, employing a rare method to serve its suit to the elusive group that has thus far been unresponsive. As CBS News first reported last month, the DNC filed a motion with a federal court in Manhattan requesting permission to serve its complaint to WikiLeaks on Twitter, a platform the DNC argued the website uses regularly. The DNC filed a lawsuit in April against the Trump campaign, Russian government and WikiLeaks, alleging a massive conspiracy to tilt the 2016 election in Donald Trump's favor. All of the DNC's attempts to serve the lawsuit via email failed, the DNC said in last month's motion to the judge, which was ultimately approved. The lawsuit was served through a tweet from a Twitter account established Friday by Cohen Milstein, the law firm representing the DNC in the suit, with the intent of serving the lawsuit. The DNC argued the unusual method of serving a … [Read more...] about DNC serves WikiLeaks with lawsuit via Twitter
CNN Continues to Lobby Twitter for Infowars Purge
CNN is continuing its effort to pressure Twitter into banning InfoWars, following the mass purge pushed by the news outlet this week. In an article, CNN senior reporter Oliver Darcy compiled a list of posts which he believed violated Twitter’s terms of service rules, including criticism of Islam and “rants against drag queens.”Darcy and CNN believe that it violates Twitter’s rules to claim that the Crusades were a “defensive measure.” One of the items on Darcy’s list reads: A November 2017 video posted to Twitter by InfoWars claimed The Crusades were a “defensive” measure. In the video, Jones suggesting individuals of the Muslim faith were invading Europe. He shouted, “And we are going to stop you again! Do you understand?!” He also lists an example of Jones complaining about drag queens reading books to children. Breitbart News has reported on the controversy of drag queens reading to children as recently as … [Read more...] about CNN Continues to Lobby Twitter for Infowars Purge
Report: Elon Musk’s Twitter Blocking Could Mean SEC Trouble
According to a report from Fortune, Elon Musk may face SEC trouble for blocking naysayers, critics, and journalists on Twitter. Tesla CEO Elon Musk recently tweeted that he was “considering taking Tesla private” and that he had gained funding to do so, now it appears that tweeting such market-influencing details may not be entirely legal due to Musk’s history of blocking users. Twitter has been a legitimate channel for investor communication since 2013 when the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) stated that the social media platform as a valid disclosure method as long as companies warned investors prior to posting on the platform.Tesla agreed to these terms, at one point instructing investors in November 2013 to “follow Elon Musk’s and Tesla’s Twitter accounts” for more information. But now, it appears that Musk’s blocking of users that bother him on the platform may undermine the company’s current situation with the SEC. If … [Read more...] about Report: Elon Musk’s Twitter Blocking Could Mean SEC Trouble
Twitter boss admits he was wrong to suggest journalists police site
News / UK and world by Press Association August 10, 2018, 6:52 pm FacebookTwitterLinkedInWhatsAppEmail Sign up to our Daily newsletter Twitter boss Jack Dorsey has admitted his suggestion that journalists monitor the site for misinformation was “wrong”. Mr Dorsey made the comment as debate continues around the presence on social media of figures such as Infowars’s Alex Jones. Mr Dorsey was criticised after he said conspiracy theorist Jones had not violated Twitter rules through his content and it was the responsibility of journalists to hold the Infowars host to account. Now the social media boss has admitted his initial approach was incorrect. Referencing a blog on the issue by Techdirt’s Mike Masnick, Mr Dorsey said: “Great post and critique by @mmasnick. And agree my original suggestion around journalists was ‘hamfisted’ & wrong. We’d love to openly discuss and help design protocols to make decentralized … [Read more...] about Twitter boss admits he was wrong to suggest journalists police site