back to article Twitter: Why we silenced Rose McGowan after she slammed alleged sex pest Harvey Weinstein

Twitter was today accused of censorship after it froze the account of actress Rose McGowan – who had just publicly slammed alleged sex fiend Harvey Weinstein. McGowan was surprised to find herself locked out of her @rosemcgowan profile on Wednesday night, and posted on Instagram a screengrab of a telling-off she received from …

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      1. jelabarre59

        Re: Oh I might leave...

        I beat you, I never joined Twatter because errrm it's for idiots. Hence why it is so popular with MPs, the media and Agent Orange.

        Same here. I could never see a reason to use it. Well, maybe just one usage, and it had nothing to do with "Social Media"; I had thought it might be useful for the CommandLineFu twitter feed. But even that wasn't worth it.

        After all, isn't "twitter" just a shade stronger than "twit"?

    1. DropBear

      Re: Oh I might leave...

      Getting drunk empowered by the megaphone it lends to your own opinions while simultaneously decrying the disgusting immorality of doing the same for someone you dislike is just basic human nature.

  1. Prst. V.Jeltz Silver badge

    It would be so awesome if Twitter banned the Trump's account.

    All they have to do is slip "Threatening other nation states" into the T&Cs

    I'd love to see his apoplectic-with-rage reaction , as long as it isnt nuking Twitter HQ.

    1. John Smith 19 Gold badge
      Happy

      "It would be so awesome if Twitter banned the Trump's account."

      Indeed.

      "Cutting off terrorists from the Oxygen of publicity" as some politician put it, IIRC.

      That's put a real smile on my Monday morning.

  2. Mr Dogshit

    I bet them actresses were begging for it. I reckon they were queuing up to give him massages.

    And he's a clever guy, came up with the theory of relativity after all.

  3. Pen-y-gors

    This is a bit embarassing

    I feel rather like the judge who asked 'Who are the Beatles' - I seem to be so far out of touch with modern 'culture' that I have no idea who most of these people mentioned are. From the news headlines, Weinstein is obviously some sort of movie mogul, but most of the people he tried it on with are just names. Some I've heard of, most I haven't. Even the ones I've heard of, I'd have trouble naming any film they've been in (and that's not just my poor memory)

    I see posters and reviews for new movies, but most just don't rock my boat. Is this a reflection on the quality of the films being made, or my changing tastes? I don't know.

    Someone on the radio yesterday read out the names of the people in the next Celebrity BB (see - I know that's shorthand for Big Brother) - I'd never heard of any of them. Maybe I need to spend more time on Mail Online and less on El Reg.

    Time to go and watch that Quiet Man DVD again...

    1. Adrian 4

      Re: This is a bit embarassing

      What makes you think it would be so important to know who these people are that you'd suffer even a second of Mail Online to find out ?

    2. phuzz Silver badge

      Re: This is a bit embarassing

      I'm assuming that she's related to Shaun McGowan of the Pogues, but presumably has a much better dentist. Or just a dentist.

      1. John Smith 19 Gold badge
        Headmaster

        "I'm assuming that she's related to Shaun McGowan of the Pogues,"

        Actually not.

        Was noted for various acting roles but mainly as long term GF to Marilyn Manson, who is, I believe, a musician of some sort.

        And now I must wheel my bath chair around the garden before going inside for my afternoon nap.

      2. jelabarre59

        Re: This is a bit embarassing

        I'm assuming that she's related to Shaun McGowan of the Pogues, but presumably has a much better dentist. Or just a dentist.

        The forth member of the "power-of-three" trio in the TV series Charmed. She got the role in part because she was less obnoxious than Shannen Doherty (yeah, not that hard; SD is a talented professional, but apparently a difficult person off the set). I may like a lot of RM's work, but I've long since learned that the performer on-screen or on-stage is not always connected to who they are in person. As opposed to someone like Michael O'Hare (Cmdr Sinclair on Babylon 5) who was a friendly and down-to-earth person the two times I met him.

        1. BrownishMonstr

          Re: This is a bit embarassing

          She also came in a Robert Rodriguez film titled Planet Terror with a gun for a leg, which I thought was awesome in my teenage years 10yrs ago.

    3. Prst. V.Jeltz Silver badge

      Re: This is a bit embarassing

      "read out the names of the people in the next Celebrity BB"

      Its one thing to be out of touch on the latest film stars , I'm in the same position , but NOBODY knows who the nobodys on celebrity BB are . They are only on the "celeb" version because they've been on some other worthless moronic reality show , not because they are celebrities!

  4. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Horrible.

    I have a sinking feeling that the whole Weinstein situation is going to get really horrible: not only in terms of what he did to who, but also how many leading Hollywood actors and actresses kept silent for years, knowing all this was going on. Possibly the same set of individuals who normally lecture us so regularly and freely about politics, the environment, behaviour, equality and so on. The ones who told us what a monster Trump is, maybe knowing full well they had a worse one in their midst, next to them on that glittering awards stage. “I owe it all to Harvey”...

    If Weinstein has done what is being alledged about him, then I hope he’s suitably punished, I really do, and that some of the people who could’ve stopped this much earlier took a good deep look at themselves, rather than their usual vapid grin at the nearest camera.

    1. ecofeco Silver badge

      Re: Horrible.

      Hunter S. Thompson said: "The music business is a cruel and shallow money trench, a long plastic hallway where thieves and pimps run free, and good men die like dogs. There's also a negative side.”

      Hollywood is worse.

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    How widespread?

    If these A-listers get subject to this, how much worse must it be at the bottom of the pile auditioning to shake your arse in the background of a music video?

    Weinstein is just the gilded tip of a rather large iceberg I suspect and people need to turn down settlements rather than just ranting on twitter.

    1. eldakka

      Re: How widespread?

      As I understand it, they weren't A-listers at the time of the abuse. It was while they were still young, up and coming actresses.

      1. Lotaresco

        Re: How widespread?

        " It was while they were still young, up and coming actresses."

        I think you will find it was Weinstein that was up and coming.

      2. MT Field

        Re: How widespread?

        How does that explain the Angelina Jolie angle? She was born into Hollywood royalty and yet she claims she had to get with the big guy. Which makes her a either a coward or a liar.

      3. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: How widespread?

        > "...while they were still young, up and coming actresses."

        I'm not playing down the pressure she was under at all, but she was 23/4 at the time suggested and had been in several major films already.

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    News, but not new....

    People, particularly I'm afraid, men, in a position of power and influence, using that power and influence to get what they want, even if, sometime especially if, it harms others. You can probably find examples back to pre-history, in fact probably before Homo Sapiens.

    Not that this person isn't an odious, bullying, low life pervert, who deserves all he gets of course. Shedding light on it is 100% positive. But this is as old as the hills. And, lucky people who've discovered Bojack Horseman will recognize the uncle hanky storyline from season 3.

  7. This post has been deleted by its author

  8. Terry 6 Silver badge

    It's a side issue but

    Companies like Twitter/Facebook etc. seem to think that they live in a kind of insulated vacuum flask, so that they can take decisions that make life comfortable for themselves and there won't be any comeback from the wider world. They always seem shocked when the world catches up with them.

  9. m-k

    publicly slammed rampant sex fiend

    me to, me too!!!!

    ...

    oh why is NOBODY looking at me?!

  10. ecofeco Silver badge

    So twitter is like...

    ...a thing?

    Twits.

  11. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Found another one

    Dude no one cares.

    Price? Your SJW badge?

    You're just cheating yourself.

  12. ukgnome

    Twitter is Mos Eisley

    A hive of scum and villainy.

    All that is missing is the Bith tootling away whilst Max Rebo gets the boogie on.

  13. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    A not entirely neurotypcial person writes

    Fucking hot teen age and early twenty something sound like lots of fun but I'll bet "Big Harvey" enjoyed something else even more.

    The ones who really didn't like it. The ones who are just barely controlling their tears, and then when they can't hold them any longer, the sobbing. Plowing into them knowing they'd almost rather die than be where they are at the moment, and the fact there's nothing they can do about it. Those are the sweetest moments.

    Rape (and if there was a video camera present I'd bet some of these incidents were rape) is not about sex, but about power. The truth is if they submit willingly ("It's for my career. Ho hum") it's just not as much fun for some people, and I think Harvey is one of those. This is not role play with a safe word. This is not a game he could have hired someone to play (or even his very attractive wife. A useful cover, handy for the "Why would I do such a thing when I can come home to her" defense).

    Anon, as this post might seem a bit sinister, and I don't want to suffer a "reverse halo" effect for my other posts.

  14. Anonymous Coward
    Trollface

    Anyone remember when Twitter's

    Gate-keeping was applauded as a great thing.

    Its a shame that you get shutdown because you posted "highly objectionable content", or just some shit some people might not like.

    On another note, all this revolting business, 'which "everyone" knew about' but did nothing about.

    Reminds me of when Mel Gibson (and a few others come to think of it) had their mental breakdowns and started going on about "The Jews" in Hollywood.. kind of make more sense now..

  15. Scroticus Canis
    Childcatcher

    Miss McGowan not smelling of roses on this one.

    "McGowan herself reached a $100,000 settlement with the mogul in 1997 following “an episode in a hotel room during the Sundance Film Festival,” and signed a non-disclosure agreement."

    So basically she accepted money for sex; OK a lot of money. More of a story, I would say, than a blocked twatter account.

    The timing of her disclosure together with the news that she accepted payment tickles a little bit of suspicion about a rebuffed "second pay-day".

    If it was rape then she should have laid charges when it happened; not doing so allowed an offender to potentially harm more people. If he did commit more offences in the intervening 19 years then she will have to live with some responsibility for them.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Miss McGowan not smelling of roses on this one.

      Considering how many people don't tell anyone about these incidents for many, many years I don't think I can blame her for not telling anyone. Maybe she wanted to, but she was scared she won't be believed and nothing good will come from it. To go through the trial would be highly stressful and if he doesn't get convincted, if your career is down the drain then what was the point of speaking up. I mean, it didn't go well for anyone speaking up about Saville.

      My mum, now 50, was abused by her own (late) father in her young age and we only found out about it a few years ago. Even my father didn't know until my sister convinced her to tell. Should she have told her mum? That witch wouldn't have even believed her. How do I know? Because my gran's father was abusive and she wouldn't even believe her neice, despite my mum saying the same.

      That said, I don't think it is fair to publicly name alleged rapists until there's a high chance of evidence against them, otherwise an innocent person could have their life ruined. Does that contradict what I said about my grandfather despite not being able to defend himself? I always thought he was a prick and my sister thought he was a perve so I have no reason to believe he wasn't.

  16. John Smith 19 Gold badge
    Unhappy

    "Maybe she wanted to, but she was scared she won't be believed "

    Looks like she was right.

  17. mark l 2 Silver badge

    I tried to sign up to Twitter earlier on this week, I was using my home internet but skipped the phone verification when signing up. I had not even posted a single message when I received the message that their was suspicious activity on my account and I would have to provide phone verification to continue. It annoys me that these companies require you give them your phone number and don't offer any other way of proving your account is genuine. I am sure its nothing to do with verification and all about harvesting even more data they can use to target ads.

    Long story short is that I am not going to sign up to Twitter after all, unless I buy a burner PAG SIM card for signing up for such services so I can keep my real number private.

    1. MT Field

      You're not missing out. With the exception of some very funny professional comedians I used to follow, Twatter is an incomprehensible stream of rubbish from the exact sort of person I avoid having to listen to in real life. Happy to leave them to it.

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