MUMBAI/NEW DELHI: One of India’s best-known women journalists, Barkha Dutt, launched a scathing attack on Twitter Inc. on Tuesday for temporarily locking her account after she posted details of men who allegedly stalked and threatened her.
Dutt said some people had posted and circulated her phone number on Twitter, enabling the harassment, which she said included threats of rape and images of genitalia being sent to her phone.
Dutt tweeted some of the threats and images on Monday, and she included phone numbers and names of the men who allegedly threatened her, after which her account was suspended.
She posted her complaint against Twitter in a tweet on Tuesday, after her account was re-activated.
“I would like to place on record my absolute horror and disgust at Twitter’s encouragement of sexual abuse and gender inequality,” said Dutt, a former managing editor at news channel NDTV and a regular columnist with the Washington Post.
Dutt accused Twitter of being “vile enablers of sexual abuse and violence.”
Twitter said it did not comment on individual accounts for privacy and security reasons and it referred to its rules that users may not publish or post other people’s private information without their express authorization and permission.
“If we identify a Tweet that violates the Twitter Rules, there are a range of enforcement options we may pursue. These include requiring a user to delete a Tweet, and/or being temporarily locked out of their account before they can Tweet again,” a spokeswoman for Twitter said in an email.
The social media platform is already facing scrutiny in India.
Its chief executive, Jack Dorsey, has been called to appear before a parliamentary panel this month to discuss initiatives being taken to safeguard citizen’s rights on social media and online news platforms.
The hearing comes soon after the conservative Youth for Social Media Democracy group accused Twitter of left-wing bias and protested outside its office in New Delhi this month.
Dorsey did not appear at a hearing earlier this month.
A person with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Tuesday the parliamentary panel had written an email to Dorsey, reiterating its demand that he appear at a Feb. 25 hearing.
Twitter declined to comment on whether Dorsey would attend.
Social media giants in India are being put under greater scrutiny ahead of a general election due before May, in which Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his ruling party are seeking re-election.
Several social media companies are overhauling policies to curb misinformation ahead of the vote.
Indian journalist condemns Twitter for blocking account after abuse online
Indian journalist condemns Twitter for blocking account after abuse online
- Dutt's account was blocked after she posted details of men who allegedly stalked and threatened her
- Dutt accused Twitter of being “vile enablers of sexual abuse and violence”
‘Tehran’ producer Dana Eden found dead in Athens hotel room
- Greek police say death being treated as suicide
DUBAI: Dana Eden, a producer of the Israeli thriller series “Tehran,” was found dead in her hotel room in Athens on Sunday, according to Israel’s public broadcaster Kan.
The 52-year-old was reportedly in Greece for the filming of the show’s fourth season, which stars Niv Sultan, Shaun Toub, and Hugh Laurie.
Greek police said that the cause of death had not been officially confirmed but that the case was being treated as a suicide based on available evidence and witness testimony, according to media reports.
Eden co-led the production company Donna and Shula Productions with showrunner Shula Spiegel.
In a statement issued Monday, the company said that “the rumors about criminal death or about a national background are not true and are not grounded,” and urged the media and public to “behave responsibly and sensibly” and “refrain from publishing unverified assumptions.
“It’s a moment of great pain for the family, friends and colleagues. We ask to preserve Dana’s dignity and the privacy of her dears,” the statement added.
