4 ms·

Technically he was suspended from Twitter for tweeting the email address of NBC exec Gary Zenkel.

by nthitz 14y ago

vidar 14y ago
But its fair to say that it would not have been a problem had the coverage been positive. This is the price of playing with the big boys, you have to stick up for your partners. There is no way you can go the media company route (vs. the api/infrastructure route) and not get this conflict.
- killerswan 14y ago
  Seems like app.net is worth another look... https://join.app.net/ https://join.app.net/
  - tree_of_item 14y ago
    Why? It's not open source and is vulnerable to the same issues, i.e. a single point of failure should some large entity deem a message undesirable. It'd be better to take a look at things like status.net, or more low level solutions such as http://scripting.com/stories/2012/07/25/anOpenTwitterlikeEcosystem.html http://scripting.com/stories/2012/07/25/anOpenTwitterlikeEco....
    - seagreen 14y ago
      We need LINT! (LINT Is Not Twitter) Any other resource recommendations besides the Winer article?
rickmb 14y ago
Which is extremely disturbing because it is not a private email address. It's a corporate business address, which makes it as socially acceptable as "send all your complaints to NBC c/o Gary Zenkel", and not against Twitter's policy.
- shock3naw 14y ago
  Why is that not a private email address? Just because I have a corporate email address, that doesn't mean I expect random fan mail or people I don't know emailing me complaints/whatever. Twitter received a complaint from NBC, and according to the Terms of Service, the account had to be suspended. Obviously this backfired, but that's not the point.
uptown 14y ago
...which is now available in the text of the Reuters story which unquestionably has a larger audience than the original tweet. http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/07/30/us-twitter-nbc-journalist-idUSBRE86T19720120730 http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/07/30/us-twitter-nbc-jou...
- Zenst 14y ago
  Guess double standards are still alive. Wonder how google+ and facebook handle this.
incision 14y ago
It's worth pointing out that the address in question is a corporate address (Gary.zenkel@nbcuni.com). That address is surely about as "personal" to Zenkel as the 30 Rockefeller Plaza address is.
- slantyyz 14y ago
  Are business e-mails considered personal/private information - legally speaking - in the USA? I was under the impression that non-business e-mails, phone numbers and addresses were considered private, but anything related to a business was fair game.
  - dkrich 14y ago
    Most definitely private. The only exception is if you haven't taken reasonable actions to keep it private (ie, if you had posted it publicly).
    - rhizome 14y ago
      Au contraire. I give you Intel vs. Hamidi http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_Corp._v._Hamidi http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_Corp._v._Hamidi
      - dkrich 14y ago
        Did you read the OP's comment or that Wikipedia article? That has nothing to do with what he asked which was whether corporate emails were considered private. You're citing a case about trespassing by somebody who already had access to the email addresses.
        rhizome 14y ago
        This email address was publicly available, and I can see how that would be tantamount to already having the address, as in Hamidi.
DigitalSea 14y ago
Even though technically the email address is not a non-public one. As pointed out in the article the email address can be found via a simple Google search.
- danielweber 14y ago
  "Findable via google" doesn't mean "okay by our ToS to post it." Even Reddit will stomp on you if you post someone's home address that you find via the google. I think it's arguable whether his work address is "personal information" or not. EDIT LoganCale points out that I am wrong. He's right.
  - LoganCale 14y ago
    It does in this case: "If information was previously posted or displayed elsewhere on the Internet prior to being put on Twitter, it is not a violation of this policy."
fleitz 14y ago
I'm pretty sure his employment contract deems the address as property of NBC Universal, therefore it's impossible that it could be Gary Zenkel's private email. It's an email owned by a public company, that's about as public as you get.
LoganCale 14y ago
Twitter's ToS* states "If information was previously posted or displayed elsewhere on the Internet prior to being put on Twitter, it is not a violation of this policy." and it appears in at least one location online from long before this incident: http://www.fidei.org/2011/06/boycott-nbc-removed-under-god-from.html http://www.fidei.org/2011/06/boycott-nbc-removed-under-god-f... * This is actually not directly from the ToS, but a Twitter support page which serves to clarify the part of the ToS which states this.
- Zenst 14y ago
  Yes but NBC are social media bullies, what next there communications officer calling all people who complain names, oh wait no that already happened. This is the same NBC that cancelled Star Trek, they clearly have not learned how to handle social interactions and feedback still from there customers and potentual customers.

Technically he was suspended from Twitter for tweeting the email address of NBC exec Gary Zenkel.

by nthitz 14y ago

Technically he was suspended from Twitter for tweeting the email address of NBC exec Gary Zenkel.

vidar 14y ago

But its fair to say that it would not have been a problem had the coverage been positive. This is the price of playing with the big boys, you have to stick up for your partners. There is no way you can go the media company route (vs. the api/infrastructure route) and not get this conflict.

killerswan 14y ago
Seems like app.net is worth another look... https://join.app.net/ https://join.app.net/
- tree_of_item 14y ago
  Why? It's not open source and is vulnerable to the same issues, i.e. a single point of failure should some large entity deem a message undesirable. It'd be better to take a look at things like status.net, or more low level solutions such as http://scripting.com/stories/2012/07/25/anOpenTwitterlikeEcosystem.html http://scripting.com/stories/2012/07/25/anOpenTwitterlikeEco....
  - seagreen 14y ago
    We need LINT! (LINT Is Not Twitter) Any other resource recommendations besides the Winer article?

rickmb 14y ago

Which is extremely disturbing because it is not a private email address. It's a corporate business address, which makes it as socially acceptable as "send all your complaints to NBC c/o Gary Zenkel", and not against Twitter's policy.

shock3naw 14y ago
Why is that not a private email address? Just because I have a corporate email address, that doesn't mean I expect random fan mail or people I don't know emailing me complaints/whatever. Twitter received a complaint from NBC, and according to the Terms of Service, the account had to be suspended. Obviously this backfired, but that's not the point.

uptown 14y ago

...which is now available in the text of the Reuters story which unquestionably has a larger audience than the original tweet. http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/07/30/us-twitter-nbc-journalist-idUSBRE86T19720120730 http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/07/30/us-twitter-nbc-jou...

Zenst 14y ago
Guess double standards are still alive. Wonder how google+ and facebook handle this.

incision 14y ago

It's worth pointing out that the address in question is a corporate address (Gary.zenkel@nbcuni.com). That address is surely about as "personal" to Zenkel as the 30 Rockefeller Plaza address is.

slantyyz 14y ago
Are business e-mails considered personal/private information - legally speaking - in the USA? I was under the impression that non-business e-mails, phone numbers and addresses were considered private, but anything related to a business was fair game.
- dkrich 14y ago
  Most definitely private. The only exception is if you haven't taken reasonable actions to keep it private (ie, if you had posted it publicly).
  - rhizome 14y ago
    Au contraire. I give you Intel vs. Hamidi http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_Corp._v._Hamidi http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_Corp._v._Hamidi
    - dkrich 14y ago
      Did you read the OP's comment or that Wikipedia article? That has nothing to do with what he asked which was whether corporate emails were considered private. You're citing a case about trespassing by somebody who already had access to the email addresses.
      - rhizome 14y ago
        This email address was publicly available, and I can see how that would be tantamount to already having the address, as in Hamidi.

DigitalSea 14y ago

Even though technically the email address is not a non-public one. As pointed out in the article the email address can be found via a simple Google search.

danielweber 14y ago
"Findable via google" doesn't mean "okay by our ToS to post it." Even Reddit will stomp on you if you post someone's home address that you find via the google. I think it's arguable whether his work address is "personal information" or not. EDIT LoganCale points out that I am wrong. He's right.
- LoganCale 14y ago
  It does in this case: "If information was previously posted or displayed elsewhere on the Internet prior to being put on Twitter, it is not a violation of this policy."

fleitz 14y ago

I'm pretty sure his employment contract deems the address as property of NBC Universal, therefore it's impossible that it could be Gary Zenkel's private email. It's an email owned by a public company, that's about as public as you get.

LoganCale 14y ago

Twitter's ToS* states "If information was previously posted or displayed elsewhere on the Internet prior to being put on Twitter, it is not a violation of this policy." and it appears in at least one location online from long before this incident: http://www.fidei.org/2011/06/boycott-nbc-removed-under-god-from.html http://www.fidei.org/2011/06/boycott-nbc-removed-under-god-f... * This is actually not directly from the ToS, but a Twitter support page which serves to clarify the part of the ToS which states this.

Zenst 14y ago
Yes but NBC are social media bullies, what next there communications officer calling all people who complain names, oh wait no that already happened. This is the same NBC that cancelled Star Trek, they clearly have not learned how to handle social interactions and feedback still from there customers and potentual customers.