Trying to tweet links to many Mastodon servers results in a message that the site is ‘potentially harmful’
Twitter is blocking users from tweeting links to many major servers for Mastodon, one of the most notable Twitter alternatives. The ban was enacted sometime during what’s been a chaotic Thursday evening on the platform after journalists and Mastodon’s own account were unexpectedly suspended.
Attempting to tweet many Mastodon links will result in an error message saying, “We can’t complete this request because this link has been identified by Twitter or our partners as being potentially harmful.” Twitter is currently blocking links to the original mastodon.social server and more than 10 other domains The Verge tested.
The ban on Mastodon follows the recent controversy around @ElonJet, an account that tracks the whereabouts of Twitter CEO Elon Musk’s private jet. On Wednesday, Twitter suspended the @ElonJet Twitter account and soon after suspended the personal account of the person who manages it. Twitter also introduced a new policy that bans people from sharing live locations of another person.
On Thursday, Mastodon’s Twitter account was suspended, and while we don’t know exactly why, the ban happened soon after the account tweeted a link to @ElonJet’s page on Mastodon.
Twitter didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment, though it has dissolved its press office. Mastodon also hasn’t responded to a request for comment.
RELATED: Twitter condemned by UN and EU over reporters’ ban
The United Nations has joined the European Union in condemning Twitter’s decision to suspend some journalists who cover the social media firm.
Reporters for the New York Times, CNN and the Washington Post were among those locked out of their accounts.
The UN tweeted that media freedom is “not a toy” while the EU has threatened Twitter with sanctions.
A Twitter spokesman told a US tech news website the bans were related to the live sharing of location data.
Melissa Fleming, the UN’s under secretary general for global communications, said she was “deeply disturbed” by reports that journalists were being “arbitrarily” suspended from Twitter.
“Media freedom is not a toy,” she said. “A free press is the cornerstone of democratic societies and a key tool in the fight against harmful disinformation.”
Earlier on Friday, EU commissioner Vera Jourova threatened Twitter with sanctions under Europe’s new Digital Services Act which she said requires “the respect of media freedom and fundament rights”.
- https://www.theverge.com/2022/12/15/23512004/elon-musk-starts-banning-critical-journalists-from-twitter
- https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-63996061
REFERENCE:
- https://www.theverge.com/2022/12/15/23512113/twitter-blocking-mastodon-links-elon-musk-elonjet
- https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-63999452
By: Miss Cherry May Timbol – Independent Reporter
