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Rose McGowan Suspended From Twitter After Ben Affleck Tweet Rose McGowan’s Twitter Account Locked After Posts About Weinstein
(about 1 hour later)
The actress Rose McGowan said in an Instagram post overnight that her Twitter account had been temporarily suspended, following a tweet in which she accused the actor Ben Affleck of prior knowledge of Harvey Weinstein’s misconduct, including toward her. The actress Rose McGowan said in an Instagram post overnight that her Twitter account had been temporarily locked following a series of posts about Harvey Weinstein’s misconduct, including toward her.
“TWITTER HAS SUSPENDED ME. THERE ARE POWERFUL FORCES AT WORK. BE MY VOICE,” Ms. McGowan wrote on her Instagram page, shortly after midnight Eastern time on Thursday. She included a snapshot of a message from Twitter saying she would only be able to send direct messages from her account unless she deleted tweets that violated Twitter rules.“TWITTER HAS SUSPENDED ME. THERE ARE POWERFUL FORCES AT WORK. BE MY VOICE,” Ms. McGowan wrote on her Instagram page, shortly after midnight Eastern time on Thursday. She included a snapshot of a message from Twitter saying she would only be able to send direct messages from her account unless she deleted tweets that violated Twitter rules.
The screenshot announced a temporary freeze that prevented her from tweeting, retweeting or liking for 12 hours. Unlike a full suspension, this measure leaves her account visible.The screenshot announced a temporary freeze that prevented her from tweeting, retweeting or liking for 12 hours. Unlike a full suspension, this measure leaves her account visible.
The message in the screenshot said that the lock was in effect because Ms. McGowan’s account had “violated the Twitter rules.”The message in the screenshot said that the lock was in effect because Ms. McGowan’s account had “violated the Twitter rules.”
It was not clear which tweets had resulted in the suspension. However, on Tuesday, after Mr. Affleck tweeted that the allegations against Mr. Weinstein “made him sick,” Ms. McGowan called him a liar, saying he had long been aware of what Mr. Weinstein had done. In a statement, a Twitter representative wrote that Ms. McGowan’s tweets violated the company’s privacy policy because one of them included a phone number.
Ms. McGowan reached a $100,000 settlement with Mr. Weinstein in 1997 following a hotel room incident at the Sundance Film Festival, and in recent days has been vocal in her support of women who have stepped forward to reveal that the producer had sexually harassed them or worse. She has also attacked Hollywood players who failed to criticize Mr. Weinstein, writing in a tweet “you all knew.” The full statement said:
It is unclear which rules Twitter found Ms. McGowan to have violated. Twitter’s terms of service define the relationship between the company and its users, including when Twitter will suspend or terminate accounts. According to the terms of service, Twitter could suspend an account for “creating risk or possible legal exposure for us.” Another part of the terms are the Twitter Rules, a controversial set of behavioral guidelines for users that include a prohibition against “harassment” and “hateful conduct.” Ms. McGowan reached a $100,000 settlement with Mr. Weinstein in 1997 following a hotel room incident at the Sundance Film Festival, and in recent days has been vocal in her support of women who have stepped forward to reveal that the producer had sexually harassed them or worse.
Twitter declined to comment on the matter. “We don’t comment on individual accounts for privacy and security reasons,” said Siobhan Murphy, a Twitter spokeswoman. On Tuesday, after the actor Ben Affleck tweeted that the allegations against Mr. Weinstein “made him sick,” Ms. McGowan called him a liar, saying he had long been aware of what Mr. Weinstein had done. She has also attacked Hollywood players who failed to criticize Mr. Weinstein, writing in a tweet, “you all knew.”
Many Twitter users expressed outrage over Ms. McGowan’s account being locked. The actress Jessica Chastain asked for clarification on which rules Ms. McGowan violated, adding, “Asking for multiple victims of sexual violence.”
The actress Jamie Lee Curtis wrote: “And now THIS? You allow Twitter freedom to our president but you silence a woman speaking out about sexual harassment?”
Jack Dorsey, Twitter’s chief executive, wrote that the company needs to be “a lot more transparent” to build trust.
Twitter has previously stated that tweets that are “newsworthy” remain on the site even if they violate its terms of service rules. In recent months, many have asked why President Trump’s account hasn’t been suspended despite seeming to threaten other countries with violence. Threats of violence are not allowed on the platform, according to the Twitter Rules, a set of behavioral guidelines for users that include a prohibition against “harassment” and “hateful conduct.” The company wrote that Twitter would not suspend Mr. Trump in part because of “newsworthiness.”
The company is now under increased scrutiny after revelations that it allowed hundreds of Russian-linked accounts to flourish on the site. The Russian-linked accounts seemed intent on inciting partisan furor and electing Mr. Trump.
Twitter has been long criticized for taking too laissez-faire an approach to monitoring content that many of its users see to be in violation of the terms of service and Twitter Rules. Some prominent users have claimed the site is a hostile space for women. The harassment campaign known as Gamergate flourished on the site for years, and when the company does suspend or ban an account it is often after immense pressure from users.