Star Trek: The Next Generation star Wil Wheaton is taking part in #DeactiDay, a movement meant to encourage Twitter users to deactivate their accounts either temporarily or permanently.
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Twitter is broken. You deserve better than an app that tolerates and welcomes the spreading of abuse and misinformation. Being part of this is not doing us any good. Personally, politically, socially. For a day, a week, forever: your call. It’s just a good time to go. #DeactiDay pic.twitter.com/LZEw78VYnp
— Wil ‘this account mocks fascists’ Wheaton (@wilw) August 15, 2018
Wheaton, who joined the social media site in 2007 as @wilw, has since updated his handle to “Wil ‘this account mocks fascists’ Wheaton.”
“Twitter is broken. You deserve better than an app that tolerates and welcomes the spreading of abuse and misinformation,” Wheaton wrote in a pinned tweet Wednesday. “Being part of this is not doing us any good. Personally, politically, socially. For a day, a week, forever: your call. It’s just a good time to go.”
In a series of tweets, Wheaton wrote Twitter “does more harm than good,” explaining the social outlet “has lost its way, because it has terrible leadership that tolerates and encourages bigotry, abuse, harassment, and the deliberate spreading of misinformation.”
The Star Trek and Big Bang Theory actor added he doesn’t “want to be part of what Twitter has become.”
“I hope that if enough of us deactivate, whoever is leading Twitter (it sure as hell isn’t Jack) will take meaningful steps to address and curtail the abuse, misinformation, and harassment that are currently its primary use,” Wheaton wrote, citing Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey.
Wheaton then linked to other social media sites, including Facebook, Instagram and Tumblr, signing off Twitter by encouraging users to “be kind to each other.”
The Washington Post reported on Wednesday Dorsey is “rethinking core parts” of Twitter so that “it doesn’t enable the spread of hate speech, harassment and false news.” Among the suggested experimental features would be promoting alternative viewpoints in user timelines to “address misinformation and reduce ‘echo chambers,’” as well as potentially labeling automated accounts known as bots.
Wheaton’s statement is available in full below.
“Rounded corners”
Us: Please enforce your TOS, and kick the Nazis off Twitter.
— Wil ‘this account mocks fascists’ Wheaton (@wilw) August 16, 2018
Twitter: We hear you. Now, HOW ABOUT … we force you to see people you don’t want to see in your timeline, instead?! WON’T THAT BE GREAT!
Us: No.
Twitter: ROUNDED CORNERS! LOOK AT THEM!! EH?! EH?!
“…toxic, hateful, abusive environment”
I’ve been here since the very beginning. Tomorrow, I’m deactivating my Twitter. I invite you to join me, for a day, a week, a month, whatever works for you, because you deserve better than the toxic, hateful, abusive environment @jack has encouraged Twitter to become. 1/ https://t.co/i4B2fSlDwW
— Wil ‘this account mocks fascists’ Wheaton (@wilw) August 16, 2018
“…more harm than good”
As I said yesterday: no judgment. If you’re not into this effort, that’s totally cool. Live your best life, and spend time here if it makes you happy. It doesn’t make me happy, and I feel that Twitter, right now, does more harm than good. 2/
— Wil ‘this account mocks fascists’ Wheaton (@wilw) August 16, 2018
“…tolerates and encourages bigotry, abuse, harassment, and the deliberate spreading of misinformation”
Early on, people like me helped Twitter grow and flourish. I’m proud of that, and I don’t regret it. But Twitter has lost its way, because it has terrible leadership that tolerates and encourages bigotry, abuse, harassment, and the deliberate spreading of misinformation. 3/
— Wil ‘this account mocks fascists’ Wheaton (@wilw) August 16, 2018
“…what Twitter has become”
I don’t want to be part of what Twitter has become. I hope that if enough of us deactivate, whoever is leading Twitter (it sure as hell isn’t Jack) will take meaningful steps to address and curtail the abuse, misinformation, and harassment that are currently its primary use. 4/
— Wil ‘this account mocks fascists’ Wheaton (@wilw) August 16, 2018
“…removing this toxicity from our lives”
I am not under any false impressions about this effort. It probably won’t make a difference at all. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t worth trying, and it doesn’t mean that our lives won’t be improved by removing this toxicity from our lives, even if it’s just temporary. 5/
— Wil ‘this account mocks fascists’ Wheaton (@wilw) August 16, 2018
“I’m still around… I just won’t be here”
As I said before, I’m at https://t.co/KyYRI0iYzf and https://t.co/OJ6k9iMrtu as wilw. I’m itswilwheaton at Instagram and Facebook, and wilwheaton at Tumblr. I’m still around, if you care about that. I just won’t be here. Thanks for listening, and be kind to each other. ? 6/end
— Wil ‘this account mocks fascists’ Wheaton (@wilw) August 16, 2018
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