WSJ: Twitter Should Do More To Keep Threatening Trump Supporters Under Control

Twitter Inc TWTR shares are down roughly 1.5 percent on Tuesday following the announcement that the company will soon be transitioning to its seventh head of product in the past six years.

Twitter is also dealing with some high-profile criticism of its policing policies.

The Wall Street Journal’s Evan Siegfried has written a new piece criticizing Twitter’s enforcement of its rules against personal threats.

Siegfried is a Republican who has been outspoken on Twitter and other platforms about how he is unwilling to vote for Donald Trump for president.

Siegfried has said that the 2016 election season has brought out the worst in many ultra-conservative members of the Republican Party, many of whom have taken to Twitter to lash out.

“One targeted group has been conservatives, many of us Jewish, who have openly stated that we will not vote for Trump in November,” he wrote.

Related Link: A Timeline Of Twitter's Management Turnover

“Our reward? Harassment, anti-Semitism and threats of Physical violence, including death.”

Siegfried noted that mainstream Republicans like himself hate to see the party’s image tarnished by “alt-right white supremacist” segment of the party and report these threats to Twitter in hopes that the company will take action.

For example, Siegfried reported that the account of @yugetrunk, which had consistently harassed and threatened Jews and other minorities who speak out against Trump, was still active nearly a month after he reported the account to Twitter.

The account was shut down only after Siegfried asked Twitter to comment for his new article.

Twitters official policy bans threats of violence and threats based on religion and ethnicity.

He noted the anonymity of Twitter seems to encourage this type of shameful behavior.

“There’s no question that Twitter is doing a terrible job at handling the harassment, hate and threats that users are experiencing,” Siegfried concluded.

Disclosure: The author holds no position in the stocks mentioned.

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Posted In: PoliticsTop StoriesMediaGeneral2016 presidential electionDonald TrumpEvan Siegfriedpresidential candidatespresidential nomineesWall Street Journal
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