Twitter Blockgate

Prior to December 2013, when Twitter users "blocked" another user, it had several effects:

1. the blocking user could not see the blocked user's content in their Twitter timeline
2. the blocked user could not see the blocking user's content in their Twitter timeline (? could they see it on a direct visit to the blocking user's page?)
3. the blocked user could not use the "retweet" functionality to share the blocking user's content with the blocked user's followers
4. the blocked user could not use the "expand conversation" functionality to view other participants and tweets in Twitter conversations involving the blocking user

In December 2013, Twitter changed this functionality so that all of the functions of blocking other than the first ("the blocking user could not see the blocked user's content in their Twitter timeline") were removed and recommended that anyone wanting another user to not see their timeline protect their entire account and show tweets only to nominated other users. Many victims of harassment and activists complained that this made Twitter much more dangerous for them, and required them to be unable to communicate with a wide audience if they wanted to avoid a small number of harassers.

After a day, Twitter announced that they would reverse the change.

Documentation

• http://hypatia.ca/2013/12/12/changes-to-twitters-block-behavior-and-a-workaround/
• Forbes: Blocking people on Twitter now just mutes them
• http://blog.darkrainfall.org/2013/12/twitter-just-said-stalking-is-okay-by-us/
• http://ashedryden.com/blog/twitters-block-policy-change-hurts-only-the-victims-of-abuse
• http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/12/13/us-twitter-abuse-idUSBRE9BC03520131213
• http://www.dailydot.com/news/twitter-block-function-harassment/ http://www.dailydot.com/news/twitter-old-block-restoretheblock-campaign/
• http://www.okwonga.com/?p=891
• http://www.thenation.com/blog/177588/twitters-blocking-flub-might-have-been-prevented-if-company-werent-dominated-men
• Twitter recants: https://blog.twitter.com/2013/reverting-the-changes-to-block-functionality