A Senator’s Twitter Account Was Suspended Over a Hunting Photo. Then Elon Musk Stepped In.
Twitter Inc. reinstated the account of a Republican senator after the social-media platform blocked him over a hunting photo he posted that was flagged for “graphic violence.”
Sen.
Steve Daines
of Montana said Tuesday he was notified Monday night that his account was locked because his profile picture showed him and his wife posing with a dead antelope.
“The initial ban over the profile photo of my wife and me after a successful Montana antelope hunt was disappointing given the fact that it is no different than photos that Montanans share on social media everyday,” Mr. Daines said in a statement. “It’s our Montana way of life and we are proud of it.”
Mr. Daines’ account was suspended for much of Tuesday. Sen.
Ted Cruz
(R., Texas) tweeted his support for Mr. Daines, calling for the Republican’s Twitter account to be reinstated.
By Tuesday afternoon, the account was restored. Mr. Daines said he was grateful that Twitter owner
Elon Musk
had reached out to him to resolve the issue.
Twitter prohibits violent threats, graphic images, and hateful conduct, and can ban or temporarily suspend accounts that violate its policies.
The social-media platform under the leadership of Mr. Musk has recently reinstated many accounts that were previously suspended for posting hate speech, inciting violence or engaging in other behavior that violated its policies, most notably the account of former President
Donald Trump.
Mr. Trump hasn’t tweeted since his suspension was lifted.
Mr. Musk described the process as a kind of amnesty for accounts that haven’t “broken the law or engaged in egregious spam.”
Mr. Musk said in a tweet that the social-media platform’s policy barring the display of blood in profile pictures is being amended to restrict photos that clearly show blood without a user clicking on the image and making it larger.
“The intent is to avoid people being forced to see gruesome profile pics,” Mr. Musk said.
Write to Joseph De Avila at [email protected]
Copyright ©2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8
Twitter Inc. reinstated the account of a Republican senator after the social-media platform blocked him over a hunting photo he posted that was flagged for “graphic violence.”
Sen.
Steve Daines
of Montana said Tuesday he was notified Monday night that his account was locked because his profile picture showed him and his wife posing with a dead antelope.
“The initial ban over the profile photo of my wife and me after a successful Montana antelope hunt was disappointing given the fact that it is no different than photos that Montanans share on social media everyday,” Mr. Daines said in a statement. “It’s our Montana way of life and we are proud of it.”
Mr. Daines’ account was suspended for much of Tuesday. Sen.
Ted Cruz
(R., Texas) tweeted his support for Mr. Daines, calling for the Republican’s Twitter account to be reinstated.
By Tuesday afternoon, the account was restored. Mr. Daines said he was grateful that Twitter owner
Elon Musk
had reached out to him to resolve the issue.
Twitter prohibits violent threats, graphic images, and hateful conduct, and can ban or temporarily suspend accounts that violate its policies.
The social-media platform under the leadership of Mr. Musk has recently reinstated many accounts that were previously suspended for posting hate speech, inciting violence or engaging in other behavior that violated its policies, most notably the account of former President
Donald Trump.
Mr. Trump hasn’t tweeted since his suspension was lifted.
Mr. Musk described the process as a kind of amnesty for accounts that haven’t “broken the law or engaged in egregious spam.”
Mr. Musk said in a tweet that the social-media platform’s policy barring the display of blood in profile pictures is being amended to restrict photos that clearly show blood without a user clicking on the image and making it larger.
“The intent is to avoid people being forced to see gruesome profile pics,” Mr. Musk said.
Write to Joseph De Avila at [email protected]
Copyright ©2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8