Twitter cuts API access to more sites archiving deleted politicians’ tweets

Twitter has severed API access to more sites that archive deleted tweets from politicians. The most recent targets—Diplotwoops and the international version of Politwoops—spanned at least 30 countries, but Twitter found the sites to be in breach of the service's privacy policy.

This weekend's development comes three months after Twitter cut API access for the US' political tweet watchdog, Politwoops, for the same reason. The Sunlight Foundation ran the US Politwoops, and the Open State Foundation ran 30 international versions of Politwoops in addition to Diplotwoops. Both organizations lashed out at this recent decision.

"What elected politicians publicly say is a matter of public record. Even when tweets are deleted, it's part of parliamentary history," wrote Arjan El Fassed, the Open State Foundation's director. "These tweets were once posted and later deleted. What politicians say in public should be available to anyone. This is not about typos but it is a unique insight on how messages from elected politicians can change without notice."