Slashdot Mirror
Twitter Blocks API Access For Sites Monitoring Politicians' Deleted Tweets
An anonymous reader writes: Politwoops is/was a site that monitored the Twitter feeds of politicians and posted any tweets that those politicians later deleted. On May 15, Twitter suspended API access for the U.S. version of Politwoops, and now they've blocked access to the versions of Politwoops running in 30 other countries. Twitter has also blocked access for similar site Diplotwoops, which focused on deleted tweets from diplomats and embassies. Twitter said, "'Imagine how nerve-racking – terrifying, even – tweeting would be if it was immutable and irrevocable? No one user is more deserving of that ability than another. Indeed, deleting a tweet is an expression of the user's voice." Arjan El Fassed, director of the Open State Foundation, which developed Politwoops, disagrees: "What politicians say in public should be available to anyone. This is not about typos but it is a unique insight on how messages from elected politicians can change without notice."
"Imagine how nerve-racking â" terrifying, even â" tweeting would be if it was immutable and irrevocable?"
Umm... you mean like all other speech?
There is no "undo" button for life Twitter. Deal with it.
I don't even know why the "Delete" button exists in Twitter, because it is stupid and doesn't do much. Various clients allow you to ignore it totally and keep the deleted tweet in your cache.
I read the statement linked in the summary and immediately wondered, what was the deleted tweet that brought the pressure on Twitter to do this?
I'm pretty sure there has to be one. Either that or someone with a lot of influence was worried that they might tweet carelessly.
I guess someone from the Ministry of Truth complained. Rewriting history is hard when all the old editions are laying around.
Its not stopping the common core people from trying though.
Repeal the 17th Amendment TODAY! Also Please Read http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/right-to-read.html
a lot of these are tweeted by interns because the actual politicians are working.
Handing a critical communication tool to an intern is a pretty dumb decision. But if the intern then says something stupid on the politician's behalf then the politician needs to own that because it is the actions of those who work for you are your responsibility.
no reason to jump on someone for saying the wrong thing on a slow news day
I don't care how fast or slow the news day is. If they said something or allowed it to be said on their behalf then they need to own it.
No such requirement exists, however, to simply visit someone's Twitter page. I see this (extremely valuable) tool as likely rewritten into a straightforward page-scraper by the end of the day. Block that, Twitter!
Hell, I might rewrite it as such if I have a slow afternoon.
We don't need no stinkin' TOS to load a public website!