Nathan Bernard, a verified user on Twitter, threatened to post revenge porn of conservative author Mike Cernovich online, Tuesday, before the threat was eventually removed.
Posting a blurred picture of Cernovich, Bernard declared, “Recently acquired some NSFW @Cernovich photography. Currently discussing options with legal. Release seems imminent, updates coming soon.”
The post was later removed, however, Bernard’s verified Twitter account remains online, and the social network has not taken away his blue checkmark — a punishment the platform has previously given to verified users who break Twitter’s rules.
Bernard’s threat to post revenge porn was criticized by Twitter users and public figures across the spectrum, including feminist journalist Robyn Pennacchia, who replied, “Dude. As awful as Cernovich is, releasing naked pictures of someone is a shitty thing to do. This doesn’t help anything and you’re literally just giving them ammo.”
Philip Labonte, the lead singer of metalcore band All That Remains, called Bernard “a real asshole.”
In a statement to Breitbart Tech, Cernovich claimed, “Bernard has harassed my wife and daughter for over two years now. He has threatened to release a sex tape of me in the past. This is an ongoing harassment campaign.”
“My wife and daughter get death threats because of Bernard and Vic Berger,” he continued. “They removed the tweet. But the account remains verified and hasn’t been suspended. Twitter endorses revenge porn. Hard to see otherwise. There’s no grey area as to what happened.”
Bernard, who has received positive coverage from the Daily Beast and Rolling Stone, previously posted a photoshopped image of Ben Shapiro wearing a Nazi uniform on his website.
According to Rolling Stone, Bernard has collaborated with former Super Deluxe contributor Vic Berger, and comedian and left-wing activist Tim Heidecker.
Bernard’s threat to publish revenge porn violates several of Twitter’s rules.
Twitter prohibits “the targeted harassment of someone,” “objectifying” people “in a sexually explicit manner,” and “otherwise engaging in sexual misconduct.”
Twitter also warns, “You may not post or share intimate photos or videos of someone that were produced or distributed without their consent,” or “threaten to expose someone’s private information or intimate media.”
In 2017, Twitter promised to do better at tackling revenge porn on the platform, and claimed, “We will suspend any account we identify as the original poster of intimate media that has been produced or distributed without the subject’s consent. We will also suspend any account dedicated to posting this type of content.”
Breitbart Tech has reached out to Twitter for comment.
Charlie Nash is a reporter for Breitbart Tech. You can follow him on Twitter @MrNashington, or like his page at Facebook.
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