SAN FRANCISCO - Twitter has announced new rules on tweets containing "non-consensual nudity" and sexual harassment, which could be seen as fallout from the Harvey Weinstein abuse scandal.
The rules will come into force in the coming weeks, Twitter said in a statement , after company co-founder Jack Dorsey posted a series of tweets promising policy changes.
The Statement read that the social media giant will immediately and permanently suspend any account they identify as the original poster/source of non-consensual nudity.
This also applies, if a user makes it clear they are intentionally posting said content to harass their target.
Twitter defines "non-consensual nudity" as including "content like upskirt imagery, 'creep shots,' and hidden camera content."
Since people appearing in these pictures "often do not know the material exists, we will not require a report from a target in order to remove it," the statement said.
"We would rather error on the side of protecting victims and removing this type of content when we become aware of it," the statement read.
Twitter also said that sexually charged conversations and the exchange of sexual media will now be "unacceptable,". They promised to take action when such exchanges are reported by participants or by observers.
Twitter's statement follows an uproar caused by the temporary suspension of the account of Rose McGowan, an actress who says that Weinstein raped her.
The account was suspended after McGowan posted an obscenity directed at actor Ben Affleck, whom she said lied about his ignorance of Weinstein's history of sexual abuse.
Twitter, however, said her account was suspended because McGowan broke usage rules by including a personal phone number in a tweet.
We have a Trust & Safety Council which reviews and gives feedback on our policy and product changes. We emailed them our proposed changes in order to get critical feedback. Email found in this article: https://t.co/i4dMsGv5rm
— jack (@jack) October 18, 2017
Here’s a description of our Council: https://t.co/aDbWkPtgsp
— jack (@jack) October 18, 2017
8/ These changes will start rolling out in the next few weeks. More to share next week.
— jack (@jack) October 14, 2017
7/ New rules around: unwanted sexual advances, non-consensual nudity, hate symbols, violent groups, and tweets that glorifies violence.
— jack (@jack) October 14, 2017
6/ We decided to take a more aggressive stance in our rules and how we enforce them.
— jack (@jack) October 14, 2017