Musk Bans Washington Post Reporter From Twitter After Allowing Others Back
Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photo: Liesa Johannssen-Koppitz/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Elon Musk banned another journalist over the weekend – after he brought some journalists back to the platform after suspending their accounts using a Twitter survey to decide their fate.
The last: The Washington Post’s Taylor Lorenz, a technology and online culture columnist, said she learned Saturday afternoon that her Twitter account had been “suspended,” she wrote in the caption.
- Lorenz and Drew Harwell, another technology reporter from the Washington Post, investigated an article involving Musk. In an effort to contact him, Lorenz requested an interview via a tweet on Saturday, she wrote.
- Later that day, when she went to check for a response, she received a notice that her account had been suspended.
The big picture: Musk has repeatedly said he supports free speech and intends to use Twitter to promote it, writes Axios’ Sara Fischer. However, he has been inconsistent with content moderation decisions.
Status: Musk asked Thursday night if “the accounts that doxxed my exact location in real time” should be unsuspended from Twitter.
- This was a reference to a number of prominent journalists, who were fired by Twitter on Thursday evening, reports Axios.
- The poll, which had more than 3.6 million votes, showed that the majority of voters (58.7%) wanted the accounts to be brought back “now”.
- “The people have spoken” Musk tweeted.
Flashback: Musk’s comments about his location stemmed from the controversy earlier this week when the account that was actively tracking Musk’s private jet was suspended from the platform.
Driving the news: Musk on Saturday – after reinstating some journalists on the platform – bashed the “corporate media” on his account, writing: “They even abandon the pretense of noble principles in their eagerness to retain the monopoly of information seen by the public.”
- Musk in a separate Twitter response as well so: “They think they are better than everyone else.”
Of the note: A Twitter poll similarly helped Musk decide whether or not to bring former President Trump back to Twitter.
- In late November, Musk reinstated Trump’s Twitter account after a Musk poll showed millions of accounts (52% of 15 million total votes) wanted him back on the platform, Axios reports.
- Trump said he has no plans to return to Twitter, and will remain on his own social media platform, Truth Social.
More from Axios:
Elon Musk’s Twitter suspends several journalists’ accounts without warning
Twitter press briefings become media flashpoint
Editor’s note: This story has been updated with additional details and with a new headline.
