As fun and entertaining and informative as it can be, Twitter, Science of Us has repeatedly noted, can also be terrible.
Certain aspects of its design make it an easily wielded hate-cudgel for some of the internet’s most despicable and/or enthusiastically misinformed denizens. Late yesterday, though, the Verge reported that the site is taking at least a baby step in the right direction — though it remains to be seen whether it will lead to any lasting changes.
The site reports:
“Amid heightened scrutiny of the way social networks enable the harassment of women online, Twitter said it is working with an advocacy group to investigate reports of abuse. A group called Women, Action, and the Media, which advocates for better representation of women, is testing a new reporting process for gender-based harassment. The group developed a tool for reporting harassment and will forward confirmed reports to Twitter. “If it checks out, we’ll escalate it to Twitter right away (24 hours max, hopefully much less than that) and work to get you a speedy resolution,” says the group, which abbreviates itself as WAM. “But please note: we’re not Twitter, and we can’t make decisions for them.”
Read the full article here.
