Newsweek senior writer Kurt Eichenwald allegedly had an actual seizure after a Twitter troll sent the veteran reporter a flashing GIF that said, “You deserve a seizure for your posts.”
Someone claiming to be Eichenwald’s wife posted from his account and said, “You caused a seizure. I have your information and have called the police to report the assault.”
Eichenwald, who has been extremely anti-Donald Trump on social media, followed up with another message, “For self-protection, I am taking a short twitter break. I will be spending that time with my lawyers & law enforcement going after 1 of u…”
He continued: “Last night, for the second time, a deplorable aware I have epilepsy tweeted a strobe at me with the message “You deserve a seizure’ on it… It worked. This is not going to happen again. My wife is terrified. I am…disgusted.”
He also threatened to subpoena Twitter for the “identity of the individual who engaged in this cross-state assault.”
Eichenwald had a lot to say, check out his entire reaction to the situation
For self-protection, I am taking a short twitter break. I will be spending that time with my lawyers & law enforcement going after 1 of u…
— Kurt Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) December 16, 2016
Last night, for the second time, a deplorable aware I have epilepsy tweeted a strobe at me with the message "you deserve a seizure' on it…
— Kurt Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) December 16, 2016
…it worked. This is not going to happen again. My wife is terrified. I am…disgusted. All I will be tweeting for the next few days are…
— Kurt Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) December 16, 2016
…copies of documents from the litigation, police reports etc. Once we have the lawsuit filed, we will be subpoenaing Twitter for the…
— Kurt Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) December 16, 2016
…identity of the individual who engaged in this cross-state assault. At this point, the police are attempting to determine if this is…
— Kurt Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) December 16, 2016
…a federal crime because it appears to be cross state. This kind of assault will never happen again without huge consequences. This…
— Kurt Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) December 16, 2016
…individual will be going to court, and he will be paying a price. And if any of you others ever try this again, I will make sure it…
— Kurt Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) December 16, 2016
…happens to you. Online anonymity does not protect criminals. Thats why subpoenas exist. You are facing a criminal investigation and a…
— Kurt Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) December 16, 2016
…lawsuit. So if any of you others think about trying this "cute" prank, consider the consequences. They will be severe.
— Kurt Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) December 16, 2016
Again, I will not be seeing your comments or tweeting for awhile except to upload copies of litigation and police documents.
— Kurt Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) December 16, 2016
Otherwise, I'll be back once it is clear from the paperwork i will be tweeting that this is not a joke. See you soon.
— Kurt Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) December 16, 2016
Earlier this week, Fox News host Tucker Carlson called out Eichenwald for spreading potentially fake news on Twitter without an explanation.
“Do you believe that you’re practicing journalism?” Carlson asked in the testy confrontation.
The Eichenwald tweet that irked Carlson said, “I believe Trump was institutionalized in a mental hospital for a nervous breakdown in 1990, which is why he won’t release medical records.”
“One day you’re criticizing the press for being lazy and inaccurate, and the next day you yourself are being lazy and inaccurate,” Carlson said.
His answer was a long-winded explanation about how he began covering Trump in the 1980s, when he obtained Trump’s medical records, which stated the real estate mogul was prescribed an “amphetamine derivative.”
Carlson didn’t care for the back story and repeatedly asked Eichenwald for a simple yes or no. “Was he in a mental hospital in 1990 or not?”
Carlson tried to speed up Eichenwald’s long-winded answer to no avail. However, the Newsweek writer was combative, saying things like, “You’re not fooling anybody, you’re trying to stop me from giving the answer.”
At one point, Eichenwald pulled out a binder labeled “Tucker Carlson Falsehoods,” to which Carlson seemed extremely amused. The two continued to argue for a few minutes and Carlson eventually said, “This is a little nutty, I’ve got to be honest.”