Twitter Unfreezes New York Post Account Days After Backlash From Republican Lawmakers

Twitter said on Friday it had changed its policy and lifted a freeze it placed on the account of the New York Post after the newspaper published articles about Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden's son.

The New York Post can now send tweets again, the social media platform said. On October 14, Twitter had said the stories violated its hacked materials policy.

"We will no longer restrict their account under the terms of the previous policy and they can now tweet again," Twitter said.

Earlier this week, Twitter's Chief Executive Jack Dorsey drew fire from Republican lawmakers, who accused the company of selective censorship against conservatives.

"Who the hell elected you and put you in charge of what the media are allowed to report?" Senator Ted Cruz asked Dorsey during the hearing.

The New York Post tweeted a picture featuring Twitter's bird logo flying out of a cage, with the caption "Twitter backs down, finally unlocks Post account after Biden ban."

News Corp, which owns the New York Post, said Twitter's decision had a negative commercial impact on the newspaper but that its decision today is an important moment for freedom of the press.

"The arbitrary blocking of the Post was a significant moment during a critical time in this election season," News Corp said in a statement.

© Thomson Reuters 2020