EU threatens to sanction Twitter after suspension of journalists from platform

Donie O'Sullivan

The European Union (EU) has threatened to introduce sanctions against Elon Musk after the suspension of a number of journalists from Twitter.

Mr Musk suspended a number of reporters from Twitter on Thursday evening, among them CNN's Donie O'Sullivan.

Mr O'Sullivan has been among many journalists to cover the social media site in the news since Mr Musk's takeover of the platform earlier this year.

EU commissioner Vera Jourova warned that the EU's Digital Services Act requires respect of media freedom.

In a tweet, she wrote: "News about arbitrary suspension of journalists on Twitter is worrying. EU’s Digital Services Act requires respect of media freedom and fundamental rights. This is reinforced under our Media Freedom Act.

"Elon Musk should be aware of that. There are red lines. And sanctions, soon," she tweeted.

Before the suspension, Mr Musk had tweeted that rules banning the publishing of personal information applied to all, including journalists.

Mr Musk falsely claimed that the journalists had violated his new "doxxing" policy by sharing his live location, amounting to what he described as "assassination coordinates."

Mr O’Sullivan did not share the billionaire’s live location at any point.

Another account on the platform titled @ElonJet had been using publicly available flight data to track the movements of Mr Musk's jet plane. 

It was suspended earlier this week.

Speaking to CNN after his suspension, Mr O'Sullivan said: "I do think this is very important for the potential chilling impact this can have for freelance journalists, independent journalists around the world, particularly those who cover Elon Musk’s other companies, like Tesla and SpaceX."

CNN Correspondent Donie O'Sullivan back in his home town of Cahersiveen. PIC: Alan Landers.

A CNN spokesperson said the company has asked Twitter for an explanation for Mr O'Sullivan's suspension, and it would "reevaluate our relationship based on that response."

"The impulsive and unjustified suspension of a number of reporters, including CNN’s Donie O’Sullivan, is concerning but not surprising. Twitter’s increasing instability and volatility should be of incredible concern for everyone who uses Twitter," the spokesperson said.

Other accounts to be suspended included The New York Times reporter Ryan Mac and The Washington Post’s Drew Harwell.