This article contains references to rape.
Twitter is failing to protect users from trolling following a series of changes and lay-offs implemented under Elon Musk, BBC Panorama reports.
An investigation by Marianna Spring has shown that rape survivors are being targeted by accounts that have become more active since Musk's takeover, suggesting they've been “reinstated or newly created.”
Ellie Wilson, who lives in Glasgow, shared her experience of trolling in the aftermath of disclosing that she'd experienced sexual violence. Ellie reported that she'd been raped to the police in 2020. After two years of investigations, court appearances, and a trial, the perpetrator was convicted of rape.
Before he was found guilty, the perpetrator was suspended from Glasgow University; however he was offered a place at Edinburgh University. Assuming this was a mistake, Ellie contacted the university to inform them that he was currently awaiting trial for rape. Shockingly, she reports that the university already knew and had offered him a place anyway. So began Ellie's investigation into the lack of university policies about admitting students who are awaiting trial.
After the trial finished, Ellie shared her story on social media, specifically Twitter. In her words, “And then came the trolls.”
In January 2023, Ellie tweeted, “In the early hours of New Year’s Day 2018 I was raped while unconscious by someone I trusted. This was the beginning of a cycle of abuse that lasted years. His friends and family knew but said no one would believe me. They were wrong. He spent New Year’s Day 2023 behind bars.”
"One troll said 'Oh, you're a professional victim, attention seeker,' while another said that I looked like ‘I deserved to be raped.’”
The tweet went viral; at the time of writing, its had 1.1 million views. While Ellie received messages of support, she was shocked by sudden onslaught of trolling. “There was four different accounts that all commented honestly within seconds of each other. It was really bizarre. One of them was like, 'Oh, you're a professional victim, attention seeker.' There was another one that said that I looked like I deserved to be raped.”
“I didn't really expect that me just speaking out about my experiences as a rape survivor, and everything I say as well, I try to be really uncontroversial in what I say. You would think that that's something that wouldn't cause people to troll you. But it seems there is no escape from it.”
Ellie firmly believes that social media shouldn't infringe on users' free speech – when she shared a recording of her rapist admitting his offence on TikTok the video was removed for violating community guidelines.
She points out that the free speech argument sees anonymous trolls' rights being prioritised above those of rape survivors. "There is a difference between saying something that goes against the mainstream and actively bullying and targeting people, particularly rape survivors. Essentially, it's cyber-bullying.
And Twitter just isn't doing enough to stop people like Ellie being cyber-bullied for disclosing that they've been raped. “I reported a couple of trolls at the start but apparently it wasn't a community guidelines violation,” she explains. “After that, I stopped bothering.”
She also adds that it's “concerning” that many of these trolls are using accounts that were previously suspended due to bullying. “Why reinstate those accounts?” she asks.
In response to the investigation, Elon Musk tweeted, "Sorry for turning Twitter from nurturing paradise into place that has trolls." He then replied to another tweet, saying, "True, have to admit trolls are fun."
Ellie called him out, tweeting, “I’m featured in this article Elon. I’m a rape survivor who has been campaigning online and have faced a barrage of abuse. Why do you not think it’s an important issue to address? Do you think this is just what I should have to put up with?”
In conversation with GLAMOUR, she elaborated, saying, “At the baseline, it's unprofessional but it shows just a complete disregard for the user experience. I mean, I don't even know if he bothered to read the whole article.”
Ellie worries that Musk's apparent disregard for managing trolls may deter other survivors from sharing their experiences. “I suffer from PTSD… This has had a huge impact on my life,” she explains.
"It's difficult for me to see the hate, but that's not even my top concern. I've had survivors message me and I know that there are a huge amount of survivors. People who have experienced abuse that follow me and a lot of them follow me ‘cause it makes them feel less alone. What I worry about is the fact that they might look at these comments and see all this vile stuff and think, ’You know what? I'm not going to tell anyone about what happened to me. I'm not going to come forward, I'm not going to go to the police.'”
“We already know that women face so many barriers when it comes to reporting sexual violence or domestic violence. I would hate for the online environment to add to that.”
Twitter and Musk have not formally responded to BBC Panorama's investigation.
For more information about reporting and recovering from rape and sexual abuse, you can contact Rape Crisis.
If you have been sexually assaulted, you can find your nearest Sexual Assault Referral Centre here. You can also find support at your local GP, voluntary organisations such as Rape Crisis, Women's Aid, and Victim Support, and you can report it to the police (if you choose) here.
For more from Glamour UK's Lucy Morgan, follow her on Instagram @lucyalexxandra.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7qLjApqauqp2WtKLGyKecZ5ufY8Kse8Crq6KbnJp8tcPIraueql2pv7C4y6KloGWilr2medKuqa%2BhpqS%2FtA%3D%3D