Twitter forms council to do something about its abuse problem

Twitter has announced it has formed a Trust - Safety Council in order to combat the abuse that is often widespread across the social media platform.

The company has repeatedly tried to solve the issue of abuse, bullying and harassment on its network.

"When it comes to safety, everyone plays a role," Twitter says in a company blog post.

"Twitter empowers every voice to shape the world. But you can't do that unless you feel safe and confident enough to express yourself freely and connect with the world around you," it says.

According to the announcement, some 40 organisations and individuals from across the world have joined the council.

"With hundreds of millions of Tweets sent per day, the volume of content on Twitter is massive, which makes it extraordinarily complex to strike the right balance between fighting abuse and speaking truth to power," explains Patricia Cartes, Twitter's head of Global Policy Outreach.

"That's why we are announcing the formation of the Twitter Trust - Safety Council, a new and foundational part of our strategy to ensure that people feel safe expressing themselves on Twitter," she says.

As a company, Twitter says. "To help give your voice more power, Twitter does not tolerate behaviour intended to harass, intimidate, or use fear to silence another user's voice.