Twitter Explains Why Rose McGowan's Account Was Temporarily Blocked
Photo: Griffin Lipson/BFA/REX/Shutterstock.
Update (October 12, 2017, 12:10 p.m.): Twitter released a statement explaining why the site chose to lock Rose McGowan's account temporarily. The site says one of McGowan's tweets included a private phone number, which violates the Twitter rules.
The statement reads, "We have been in touch with Ms. McGowan's team. We want to explain that her account was temporarily locked because one of her Tweets included a private phone number, which violates our Terms of Service.
"The Tweet was removed and her account has been unlocked. We will be clearer about these policies and decisions in the future."
When news that McGowan's account was down broke, many Twitter users complained that Twitter was obstructing justice. In the statement, the site promises that it has the interests of activists in mind when it comes to site management.
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It concludes, "Twitter is proud to empower and support the voices on our platform, especially those that speak truth to power. We stand with the brave women and men who use Twitter to share their stories, and will work hard every day to improve our processes to protect those voices."
We have been in touch with Ms. McGowan's team. We want to explain that her account was temporarily locked because one of her Tweets included a private phone number, which violates our Terms of Service. 1/3
— Twitter Safety (@TwitterSafety) October 12, 2017
This story was originally published on October 12, 2017 at 10:00 a.m.
Rose McGowan's Twitter account has been temporarily locked, seemingly because the actress has been particularly vocal on the social media platform about Harvey Weinstein's alleged history of sexual assault, sexual harassment, and rape. As Variety reports, McGowan shared news of her suspension on Instagram Wednesday night.
"TWITTER HAS SUSPENDED ME. THERE ARE POWERFUL FORCES AT WORK. BE MY VOICE," McGowan wrote. She shared a screenshot of Twitter's reasoning. Apparently, McGowan "violated the Twitter rules," which led to a 12-hour temporary lock. (Suspension is indefinite, while McGowan's penalty is finite: She will regain access to her account after 12 hours have lapsed.) Twitter has also asked her to delete the tweets that violate their rules.
The Twitter rules disavow abusive behavior, violent threats, harassment, hateful conduct, impersonation, self-harm, and sharing of private information, among other abuses. Representation for Twitter declined to comment on the lock, citing reasons of privacy and security.
On Tuesday, McGowan accused Ben Affleck of being a liar on Twitter. Affleck had previously released a statement condemning Harvey Weinstein which implied that Affleck had no knowledge of Weinstein's reported reprehensible history of abuse and misconduct.
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McGowan wrote, "Fuck Off Ben Affleck." She then recalled that Affleck told her "Goddammit, I told him to stop doing that!" when McGowan revealed she'd been raped by a Hollywood executive. (McGowan has yet to name the man who raped her, but this anecdote strongly suggests it was Weinstein.)
This interaction led Hilarie Burton to reveal that Affleck groped her when she was a host of Total Request Live. On Wednesday, Affleck apologized for "acting inappropriately" towards Burton. Makeup artist Annamarie Tendler then accused Affleck of groping her at the Golden Globes in 2014.
McGowan's Twitter leave of absence galvanized a rallying cry from her supporters. Jessica Chastain, who has also been very vocal about Weinstein, tweeted at Twitter's official account, asking what McGowan had done wrong.
"Hey @Twitter let us know which of these rules @rosemcgowan broke. Asking for multiple victims of sexual violence," she wrote.
Hey @Twitter let us know which of these rules @rosemcgowan broke. Asking for multiple victims of sexual violence. https://t.co/eiZjQeMAVg
— Jessica Chastain (@jes_chastain) October 12, 2017
Anthony Bourdain also shared his feelings about McGowan's absence. He commanded, "Twitter! Unblock @rosemcgowan !"
If you don't think sexism is a rampant problem, look at what twitter did to Rose McGowan. Suspended her for speaking out.
— Brittany?Sneers (@Bluepurplerain) October 12, 2017
McGowan shared news of her Twitter time-out 9 hours ago — at this point, she should have only three hours until she's back up and running.
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