Twitter Suspends Journalists’ Accounts After Allegedly Accusing Elon Musk Jet-Tracking of 'Doxxing'

Vera Jourova, a commissioner for the European Union, has emphasized the importance of upholding media freedom in light of the EU's Digital Services Act.

Some journalists' accounts were disabled, including those at the New York Times, CNN, and the Washington Post. Elon Musk tweeted that accounts he believes engaged in doxxing, the practice of publishing private information about an individual online would be temporarily suspended for seven days.

Twitter Suspends Several Journalists

Elon Musk's tweet essentially said that so called journalists were subject to the same restrictions on doxxing as everyone else. A Twitter representative previously told tech news site The Verge that the ban was caused by users disclosing their locations in real time.

Twitter was acquired by Elon Musk in an October deal valued at $44 billion around $36 billion at the time. The suspensions were deemed questionable and unpleasant by a New York Times spokeswoman.

It follows Musk's threat to sue the owner of a profile that tracks his private jet. He said that in Los Angeles, a crazed stalker had utilized live location sharing to track down the automobile in which his children were riding and attack them, as per BBC.

Several of the suspended journalists, including Washington Post's Drew Harwell and CNN's Donnie O'Sullivan, had written about Twitter's suspension of the flight-tracking accounts and Musk's jet, though it was unclear if this was the basis for their bans.

O'Sullivan, speaking to CNN after being suspended, maintained that he had not divulged the precise current location of Musk's jet. All of the suspended reporters, which also includes Micah Lee of The Intercept and Ryan Mac of The New York Times, have published articles critical of Twitter or Musk.

Twitter's Trust & Safety head Ella Irwin said that the service would suspend any accounts that breach privacy standards and put other users at risk, but she did not discuss specific cases.

Late last night, Musk's CEO shared a video of the man he claims was his stalker. The suspect, who was wearing a black hood and drove a white Hyundai, was caught on camera recording the encounter before he pulled out his phone.

The camera in the footage, which Musk's chauffeur likely shot, then panned to the vehicle's registration. The driver and the accused stalker exchanged a few words before the driver said, Got it, according to Al Jazeera.

Report: Elon Musk Cites 'Doxxing' His Jet

Billionaire Musk replied, "Yeah," when asked by a shocked Twitter follower if this was the man who hopped on the hood of the automobile. 4

He expounded on the decision to suspend @ElonJet, noting that accounts that disclosed where people were located in real-time were a physical safety violation. Doxxing someone's current location in real time is a threat to their physical safety, hence any account that engages in this practice will be banned.

Sweeney, a huge fan of the billionaire and an entrepreneur in his own right, created @elonjet in 2020 at the age of 19 so he could learn from Musk's business strategies. Seeing the account as a threat to his safety, Musk offered 20-year-old Sweeney $5,000 in 2021 to shut it down, Daily Mail reported.