A new study suggests that ISIS’s English-language reach on Twitter is diminishing in the face of a crackdown on its activities. The study, conducted by researchers at New York University and Indiana University, found that ISIS has been losing ground to other terrorist groups like Al Qaeda over Twitter. A report from George Washington University’s Program on Extremism suggests however that account suspensions targeting users affiliated with ISIS between June and October 2015 have had a major impact. US government officials have criticised Twitter for its relatively lax approach to policing its content. Under pressure, Twitter announced earlier this month that since mid-2015, it had shut down more than 125,000 accounts that had some link with terrorism.
A new study suggests that ISIS’s English-language reach on Twitter is diminishing in the face of a crackdown on its activities. ISIS has long relied on the social media platform for recruitment. A report from George Washington University’s Program on Extremism suggests however that account suspensions targeting users affiliated with ISIS between June and October 2015 have had a major impact. US government officials have criticised Twitter for its relatively lax approach to policing its content. Under pressure, Twitter announced earlier this month that since mid-2015, it had shut down more than 125,000 accounts that had some link with terrorism.