Twitter bans linking to Facebook, Instagram, other rivals - The Santa Rosa Press Democrat

Twitter users volition nary longer beryllium capable to nexus to definite rival societal media websites, including what the institution described Sunday arsenic “prohibited platforms” Facebook, Instagram and Mastodon.

It's the latest determination by Twitter's caller proprietor Elon Musk to crack down connected definite speech aft helium unopen down a Twitter relationship past week that was tracking the flights of his backstage jet.

“We cognize that galore of our users whitethorn beryllium progressive connected different societal media platforms; however, going forward, Twitter volition nary longer let escaped promotion of circumstantial societal media platforms connected Twitter,” the institution said successful a statement.

The banned platforms see mainstream websites specified arsenic Facebook and Instagram, and upstart rivals Mastodon, Tribel, Nostr, Post and erstwhile President Donald Trump's Truth Social. Twitter gave nary mentation for wherefore the blacklist included those 7 websites but not others specified arsenic Parler, TikTok oregon LinkedIn.

Twitter is besides banning promotions of third-party societal media nexus aggregators specified arsenic Linktree, which immoderate radical usage to amusement wherever they tin beryllium recovered connected antithetic websites.

Twitter antecedently took enactment against 1 of the rivals, Mastodon, aft its main Twitter relationship tweeted astir the @ElonJet contention past week. Mastodon has grown rapidly successful caller weeks arsenic an alternate for Twitter users who are unhappy with Musk’s overhaul of Twitter since helium bought the institution for $44 cardinal successful precocious October and began restoring accounts that ran afoul of the erstwhile Twitter leadership's rules against hateful behaviour and different harms.

Some Twitter users person included links to their caller Mastodon illustration and encouraged followers to find them there. That's present banned connected Twitter, arsenic are attempts to bypass restrictions specified arsenic by spelling retired “instagram dot com" and a username alternatively of a nonstop website link.

Instagram and Facebook genitor institution Meta didn't instantly instrumentality a petition for remark Sunday.

Musk permanently banned the @ElonJet relationship connected Wednesday, past changed Twitter's rules to prohibit the sharing of different person’s existent determination without their consent. He past took purpose astatine journalists who were penning astir the jet-tracking account, which tin inactive beryllium recovered connected different sites including Mastodon, Facebook, Instagram and Truth Social, alleging that they were broadcasting “basically assassination coordinates.”

Twitter past week suspended the accounts of galore journalists who screen the societal media level and Musk, among them reporters moving for The New York Times, Washington Post, CNN, Voice of America and different publications. Many of those accounts were restored pursuing an online canvass by Musk.

Then, implicit the weekend, The Washington Post’s Taylor Lorenz became the latest writer to beryllium temporarily banned from Twitter.

Lorenz said she and different Post exertion newsman were researching an nonfiction concerning Musk. She had tried to pass with the billionaire but the attempts went unanswered, truthful she tried to interaction him Saturday by posting a connection connected Twitter tagging Musk and requesting an interview.

The circumstantial taxable was not disclosed successful the tweet, though it was successful effect to Musk tweeting astir an alleged incidental earlier successful the week involving a “violent stalker” successful Southern California and Musk's complaints astir journalists allegedly revealing his family’s determination by referencing the jet-tracker account.

When she went backmost aboriginal Saturday to cheque whether determination was a effect connected Twitter, Lorenz was met with a notification that her relationship was “permanently suspended.”

“I won’t accidental I didn’t expect it,” Lorenz said successful a telephone interrogation aboriginal Sunday with The Associated Press. She said she wasn’t fixed a circumstantial crushed for the ban.

Sally Buzbee, The Washington Post's enforcement editor, said successful a written connection Sunday that the "arbitrary suspension of different Post writer further undermines Elon Musk’s assertion that helium intends to tally Twitter arsenic a level dedicated to escaped speech.

“Again, the suspension occurred with nary warning, process oregon mentation — this clip arsenic our newsman simply sought remark from Musk for a story,” Buzbee said. "Post journalists should beryllium reinstated immediately, without arbitrary conditions.“

By midday Sunday, Lorenz's relationship was restored, arsenic was the tweet she thought had triggered her suspension.