Twitter "Promotes" Disgusting Tweets Asking Trans People To Kill Themselves
Twitter's lax screening policy for promoted content outraged more than a few users this week when it allowed several disgusting tweets ordering trans people to "end your miserable existence" and "commit suicide now" were forcibly pushed onto several people's timelines.
The messages, tweeted from an account impersonating Australian activist and feminist Caitlin Roper, angered users not because of their content (bigots are everywhere), but because Twitter allowed them to be promoted.
"Your family will never love you. You are living a lie & you know it. End your miserable existence. Commit suicide now," one read in part. Here are the others:
Why the fuck is this disgusting shit being promoted into my timeline? What the hell is going on? pic.twitter.com/ZJ4TUwI70z
— Caspar Salmon (@CasparSalmon) May 20, 2015
What the fucking FUCK?! pic.twitter.com/xRqCQJz2n0
— Ed Fear (@edfear) May 20, 2015
(TW: transphobia) Hey, @twitter, what the HELL is that promoted tweet? How on earth did that just appear on my TL? pic.twitter.com/vrPqlF24iy — Marie Le Conte (@youngvulgarian) May 20, 2015The tweets were immediately removed and the account deleted after users expressed outrage and reported them.
Roper's outspoken presence and activism on Twitter has made her the target for trolls in the past. After the hateful messages and account were deleted, she thanked her followers for reporting them so quickly:
Hi friends, someone has created a Twitter account impersonating me and tweeting hateful comments. Account suspended, thanks for your help x
— Caitlin Roper (@caitlin_roper) May 20, 2015
Gawker notes the troll reportedly took credit for the tweets on 4chan. He claimed pushing them onto others' timelines only cost him $25.
Asked by The Guardian how the tweets could have possibly made it through a vetting process, a Twitter spokesperson said, "As soon as we were made aware, we removed the ad and suspended the account."
