Twitter erupted in a firestorm the weekend of January 9 after outspoken conservative and libertarian journalist Milo Yiannopoulos’s account (@Nero on Twitter) was unverified by the platform. Twitter has so far refused to comment on the unverification, citing rules saying they cannot comment on individual accounts. The closest thing to an explanation available is a short, automated email notifying the journalist that he had violated Twitter rules.
Supporters on the right and left have yet to determine the exact violation. Unless you consider Milo’s outspoken and often considered politically-incorrect, yet conservative beliefs, in essence the entire contents of his account, to be in violation with Twitter’s own corporate beliefs. A number of fans, fellow conservative commentators and journalists, including even liberals, have spoken out in support with the #JeSuisMilo on Twitter. The hashtag trended in the U.S. and the U.K. throughout the weekend, and trended globally for a period of time as well.
With outspoken of a fan base as Yiannopoulos has, its hard to consider that Twitter would have done this and expected it to be a non-issue. Even Buzzfeed News, who are by no means Team Milo, reported on the removal of his unverification and the battle of politicizing free speech on online platforms.
While by no means official, many are pointing to a tweet from Yiannopoulos where he responded to a user saying “you deserve to be harassed” as the smoking gun prompting Twitter to take action against his account. Twitter has been open about their continued commitment to protecting users and eliminating harassment on the platform, but by targeting @Nero, users suggests this issue is much more political than Twitter would like to let on.
In a statement to Recode, Yiannopoulos said,
“If Twitter has decided to make partisan political editorial decisions, that’s their prerogative. But they must be honest with the public about it.”
Twitter is not subject to the rules outlined in the 1st Amendment. It is a publicly traded, international company, with a terms of service and set of rules users must agree to. Most Twitter users understand that. What is hard to understand is how Twitter continues to promote itself as a community of people, commentators, creators and journalists who have the freedom to debate and discuss the most difficult issues society is experiencing today. (Though Reddit seems to be a more fitting platforms for that kind of thinking)
As #JeSuisMilo trended over the weekend, Yiannopoulos claims to have gained more than 5,000 new followers, a sign of strength for the politically conservative provocateur. Even without the identity verification as a tool for success in managing a large following and combatting against impersonators online, it appears that Twitters attempt to curb harassment has backfired in a way that is ignited a whole new battle involving the arena of free speech and ideas online.
