Dutch MP's want Twitter to act against harassment of journalists

Twitter is too laconic when it comes to reports of threats against journalists on social media, a majority of the Tweede Kamer, the lower house of the Dutch parliament, said during a debate on press freedom. Parliamentarians are annoyed that the social media company has rejected the Cabinet’s attempts to discuss this and want to increase the pressure.

Sjoerd Sjoerdsma (D66) believes that platforms like Twitter should be obliged to be available “24 hours a day, seven days a week” if a journalist feels threatened. Social media should also actively monitor whether posts with criminal messages appear and remove them, said the MP. Otherwise, online threats will lead to self-censorship among journalists, politicians, and scientists, he warned.

According to Pim van Strien (VVD), Twitter is “still East Indies deaf” to requests from journalists and the Cabinet to intervene harder. He also thinks that there is “an undeniable role for social media platforms” when it comes to protecting freedom and security.

Caroline van der Plas (BBB) pointed to research y the Persveilig hotline, which showed that the majority of online aggression towards female journalists happens on Twitter.

Minister Dilan Yeşilgöz (Justice and Security) hinted at this point that she expects a lot from the Digital Services Act (DSA). The European legislation will take effect at the end of August and force platforms like Twitter to take a harder line against threats to press freedom. “It gives us tools to enforce,” said the Minister. She called the fact that Twitter recently did not participate in a conversation between the Cabinet and social media “very disappointing.” Partly because there is a lot of “floundering” on Twitter in particular, she thought that the platform was the “big missing factor.”

Mohammed Mohandis (PvdA) believes the Cabinet should not wait for the DSA and should take action more quickly. “What would it take to make Elon Musk (Twitter’s owner) really feel that Twitter is not above the law?” the MP wondered.

On Wednesday, Tweede Kamer president Vera Bergkamp asked Twitter to take “immediate action” and “serious steps” against threatening and violent posts directed at parliamentarians. The platform has become “more toxic” in the past year and must take responsibility, she said.