The owner of the social network Twitter, Elon Musk, announced late Friday the reinstatement of the accounts of journalists whose profiles were suspended from the platform for allegedly revealing personal information about the tycoon himself.
This was announced by the billionaire after conducting an open poll asking whether he would reinstate the accounts of journalists after accusing them of endangering his family.
«The people have spoken. The accounts that duplicated my location will now have their suspension lifted,» Musk said, after the poll showed 58.7 percent of votes against the suspension.
Twitter on Thursday blocked the accounts of several journalists who had reported on the banning of a profile that engaged in posting real-time updates on the whereabouts of Musk’s private plane, CNN reported.
The journalists, belonging to media outlets such as ‘The New York Times’, ‘The Washington Post’ or CNN itself, had shared links to that Twitter profile, which is why the tycoon considered it necessary to suspend their accounts.
«Criticizing me all day is fine, but publishing my locations in real time and endangering my family is not,» said the owner of the platform in a tweet published on Thursday.
«If someone posted real-time locations and addresses of ‘The New York Times’ reporters, the FBI would be investigating, there would be hearings on Capitol Hill and (Joe) Biden would be giving speeches about the end of democracy,» Musk ironized shortly afterward.
Later, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk welcomed the «good news» of the reinstatement of journalists’ accounts, «but serious concerns remain.» «Twitter has a responsibility to respect Human Rights. Elon Musk must commit to making decisions based on policies that respect the rights that are already available, including that of freedom of expression,» he has warned.
These bans raise a number of questions about the future of the platform, since after its acquisition by the billionaire in early November, Twitter has shared its aspirations to defend freedom of expression, even going so far as to unblock the account of former U.S. President Donald Trump, which had remained suspended since the assault on the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
