© 2025 Connecticut Public

FCC Public Inspection Files:
WEDH · WEDN · WEDW · WEDY
WEDW-FM · WNPR · WPKT · WRLI-FM
Public Files Contact · ATSC 3.0 FAQ
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Twitter Introduces 'Safe Search' And Other Tools Targeting Abuse

Preventing banned users from creating new accounts and changing its search tool to minimize blocked accounts are among the new steps Twitter is taking to prevent "the most prevalent and damaging forms of behavior" on its social media platform.

The moves come months after Twitter gave its users new ways to mute and report abusive posts, as NPR's Alina Selyukh reported in November.

Saying that Twitter wants to ensure freedom of expression while also preventing abuse and harassment, the company's vice president of engineering, Ed Ho, unveiled three changes Tuesday that will either block abusive users from their targets or help other users avoid seeing abusive content.

"We're taking steps to identify people who have been permanently suspended and stop them from creating new accounts," Ho wrote on the company's Twitter Safety blog.

The list of people who've been permanently suspended from Twitter includes conservative commentator Milo Yiannopoulos, whose ban followed a campaign against Ghostbusters actress Leslie Jones last summer. At the time, Yiannopoulos denied any wrongdoing and said his suspension was political.

Two other new changes will alter how some tweets are displayed, or how they appear in a search.

Twitter's "safe search" tool promises to remove from search results any tweets "that contain potentially sensitive content" as well as those from blocked or muted accounts. Ho says that the "content will be discoverable if you want to find it."

Another upcoming new feature would "collapse" potentially abusive or low-quality replies to a conversation, grouping the lower-rated replies together and displaying them beneath a batch of the most relevant responses.

The social media platform's attempt to curb abuse reflects what NPR's Terry Gross called a "paradox" in the company's platform last autumn:

"The paradox of Twitter is that it's become a great platform for free speech, enabling the voices of individuals and pro-democracy movements to be heard and to connect with others.

"But it's also given a platform to trolls, people who write tweets that insult, harass and threaten their targets."

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Bill Chappell is a writer and editor on the News Desk in the heart of NPR's newsroom in Washington, D.C.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.

Related Content