Twitter Revives @ElonJet, Rolls Out New ‘Live Location Information’ Rule

UPDATE 2: In another odd twist, @ElonJet has returned to Twitter.

The owner of the account, Jack Sweeney, tweeted(Opens in a new window) from @ElonJet, showing that Twitter has lifted the suspension for some unknown reason.

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The reason may have to due with Twitter’s newly introduced policy against sharing travel routes and other live location information on an individual without their consent. Under the rules, @ElonJet can technically still post Musk’s jet routes—so long as the information is no longer live.

As a result, @ElonJet tweeted to Musk, “How long does delay mean,” while later adding: “hour? we need some well-defined rules.”

Minutes later, Twitter officially commented on the controversy and indicated its new rules bar using from sharing same-day live location information on users. The company decided to crack down on publishing people’s travel routes, citing a need to protect users, despite Musk’s focus on promoting free speech.

“When someone shares an individual’s live location on Twitter, there is an increased risk of physical harm. Moving forward, we’ll remove Tweets that share this information, and accounts dedicated to sharing someone else’s live location will be suspended,” the @TwitterSafety account said(Opens in a new window).

The company added: “You can still share your own live location on Twitter. Tweets that share someone else’s historical (not same-day) location information are also not prohibited by this policy.”

UPDATE 1: The suspension seems to stem from Twitter quietly introducing(Opens in a new window) a new rule that bars users from sharing “live location information” for an individual, unless consent is given. This includes the person’s “travel routes, actual physical location, or other identifying information that would reveal a person’s location, regardless if this information is publicly available.”

The rule leaves an exception for media outlets posting images of private individuals without their consent. However, the rule could technically prevent regular users from publishing photos or videos of others on Twitter since the same images can often indicate a person’s location.

For now, Musk has only said: “Real-time posting of someone else’s location violates doxxing policy, but delayed posting of locations are ok.”

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Original story:
Twitter has suspended the account notorious for tracking Elon Musk’s jet—even though Musk originally refused to ban it. 

The suspension targets the @ElonJet(Opens in a new window) account for violating Twitter’s rules. Which rule was broken remains unclear, but the takedown is raising eyebrows because Musk says he bought Twitter to prioritize free speech, even speech with which he personally disagrees.

(Twitter)

“My commitment to free speech extends even to not banning the account following my plane, even though that is a direct personal safety risk,” Musk tweeted(Opens in a new window) on Nov. 7. 

Apparently, that commitment didn’t last long. Over the weekend, the college student behind @ElonJet, Jack Sweeney, accused Twitter of secretly “shadow banning” the account, making it harder to find. As evidence, he published(Opens in a new window) a screenshot of what he says is a Twitter exec ordering staff via Slack to place a heavy visibility filter on the @ElonJet account. 

On Monday, Sweeney claimed(Opens in a new window) Twitter had lifted the shadow ban for the account. But then this morning, he reported(Opens in a new window) the company had permanently suspended @ElonJet. Sweeney’s personal account on Twitter has also now been suspended.

In response, some Twitter users are calling out Musk for backtracking on his previous decision. “So much for free speech,” wrote(Opens in a new window) one user. In the meantime, @ElonJet remains available on Facebook(Opens in a new window) and Instagram(Opens in a new window). But Twitter has begun blocking users from posting links to the two accounts, citing potential harm.

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In addition, Twitter has also suspended numerous other accounts that were tracking private jets.

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So far, Musk hasn’t commented on the suspension. But the incident underscores how quickly Twitter’s new owner can change his mind when it comes to content moderation. In late October, for example, Musk said Twitter would only unban accounts after the company established a content moderation council. But in November, Musk reinstated former President Trump’s account after polling Twitter users about what he should do.

This past week, Musk also abruptly dissolved a Trust and Safety Council that Twitter had originally established in 2016.