Family members can use the accounts of prominent users if they have the necessary login information — which can lead to confusion for followers
Only a few weeks after his death, Herman Cain’s Twitter account grabbed people’s attention on Wednesday when it chided presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden’s campaign as “completely nuts.” The tweet stood out — for obvious reasons — and was ripped by many, with some saying it was “tasteless” for the former businessman and presidential candidate’s account to be sending tweets after Cain’s July 30 death at age 74.
On Thursday, Cain’s account was updated to reflect that it was being run by his “daughter team and family.” The account, which has more than 550,000 followers, also changed its display name from “Herman Cain” to “The Cain Gang.” Still, the moment invited the question: What does Twitter do with accounts when users pass away?
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The social media giant’s approach changes on a case-by-case basis. Twitter has a team dedicated to working with verified accounts like Cain’s; in some instances, the company’s reps will reach out to people connected to the verified account to see how the account will be handled moving forward. At other times, Twitter may wait for family or management to reach out to them.
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And according to a company rep, Twitter will deactivate the account of a deceased user when a confirmed family member or estate representative formally requests it. To remove a dead person’s account, Twitter will ask for a few documents, like a copy of the family member’s ID, a copy of the deceased’s death certificate, and information on the deceased, before completely removing it. The rep said this is to safeguard against fake or unauthorized death reports. This process is the same for both verified users and “regular” users.
Twitter does not have a policy forbidding someone from using a deceased person’s account if they have the login information, according to the company rep. In Cain’s case, his daughter, Melanie Cain Gallo, said her father’s social-media accounts will now be run by a small team that includes herself and Dan Calabrese, who ran her father’s website for nearly a decade.
“He truly valued the sharp, creative, insightful minds of his editorial team and he would not want them to stop doing what they do best! As usual, he had the best branding ideas and we see no reason to try to improve on it,” Gallo wrote on Cain’s website. “He will always be the enduring presence over everything we do here.”
There are other situations where a prominent user’s account is still active — and it’s unclear who is using it. The blue-check account for Betsy Rothstein, a former reporter for The Daily Caller who died in June after a battle with cancer, tweeted on Thursday that “everyone should know that [Herman Cain] is not the person tweeting from his account.” This was one of three tweets sent from Rothstein’s account since her death. A direct message to Rothstein’s account, asking who was now running her profile, went unanswered, and The Daily Caller declined to weigh in.
Everyone should know that @THEHermanCain is not the person tweeting from his account.
— Betsy Rothstein (@betsyscribeindc) August 13, 2020
There’s also a risk that comes with not deactivating accounts when a user dies. Most of the time, the accounts simply go dormant, but by remaining up, they run the risk of being hacked — a distinct possibility in the case of Rothstein’s Twitter page.
In 2016, the account of acclaimed New York Times journalist David Carr started sending out sexually charged tweets to his 450,000 followers 15 months after he died. Twitter ultimately had to step in and get the account under control.
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The challenge of how to handle the accounts of dead celebrities isn’t unique to Twitter, either. Many estates continue using the deceased’s accounts to promote their work and new business ventures. Recently, Kobe Bryant’s family has used his Instagram account twice since his January death to promote books his company is publishing. Instagram also appears to have struggled with how to go about labeling the account — at one point, Bryant’s account included a tag on it saying “remembering,” but it has since been pulled.
The estates of dead celebrities from Michael Jackson to Elvis Presley to Frank Sinatra — some of whom passed away long before Twitter even launched — also maintain accounts to stoke nostalgic fans and promote posthumous projects.
The tweet from Cain’s account this week — and the confusion that came with it — once again highlighted how tricky it can be for social media giants to handle deceased users’ accounts.
JK Rowling's 13 Snarkiest Tweets: From Trump Burns to Fan Clapback (Photos)
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GettyJ.K. Rowling is known for her fiery tweets almost as much as her "Harry Potter" books. Since the hit author opened her Twitter account in 2009, the Internet has been privy to the wit, charm, and -- most of all -- snark that made "Harry Potter" one of the best-selling series of all time. From President Donald Trump to Piers Morgan to anonymous Internet trolls, Rowling rarely holds back when something gets her attention. In honor of her 52nd birthday (on July 31), take a look at her snarkiest tweets.
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GettyRowling has a long-standing feud with British journalist and television presenter Piers Morgan. Here's one memorable exchange where Rowling appeared to come out on top: She tweeted a screenshot of a complimentary article about her and asked for the writer to come forward. Morgan was quick to respond, writing, "Priceless #humblebrag BS. Nobody plays the celebrity game more abusively or ruthlessly than you, Ms 'Intensely Private Billionaire.'" Of course, it turns out that Morgan was actually the person who wrote the article in the first place. Oops.
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After a Twitter troll mocked Serena Williams -- one of the best tennis players of all time -- accusing her of being built like a man, Rowling defended the sports icon like a boss, posting a picture of Williams in a red dress and writing, "'She is built like a man'. Yeah, my husband looks just like this in a dress. You're an idiot."
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Years after Rowling made waves by announcing that she always thought that Hogwarts Headmaster Albus Dumbledore was gay, she continues to stick up for the beloved character and other LGBTQ people. When a Twitter user commented that she couldn't see Dumbledore as gay, Rowling replied, "Maybe because gay people just look like... people?"
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After a Twitter user hurled abuse at Rowling (calling her "JK b---hface," among other insults), she offered a quick and brutal response: "The Internet doesn’t just offer opportunities for misogynistic abuse, you know. Penis enlargers can also be bought discreetly."
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Rowling started burning Donald Trump well before he became president. After Trump's final debate with Hillary Clinton during the campaign, Rowling declared, "Well, there you have it. A highly intelligent, experienced woman just debated a giant orange Twitter egg. Your move, America. #debate."
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JK Rowling / Twitter
After Trump met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Rowling posted a picture of a meeting between the two leaders (including a sad-looking Trump) and captioned the photo: "Mommy was mean to me and I don't want to hold her hand."
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Trump tweeted recently that he prided himself on his writing abilities, but Rowling caught his misspell of the word "pore" (he wrote "pour") in his message. The author tweeted: "hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha someone told him how to spell 'pore' hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah." Eventually she calmed down enough to write: "*wipes eyes, tries to control breathing* Seriously, @realDonaldTrump is the Greatest Writer on earth."
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When hordes of London protesters greeted Trump with a large, inflatable "Trump baby," Rowling was quick to tweet her support: "Our traditions decree that courtesy in the guest is matched by equal courtesy from the host."
Also Read: Donald Trump’s Hollywood Walk of Fame Star Destroyed by Man With a Pickaxe (Photo)
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Vice President Mike Pence has also been a subject of Rowling's scorn. After the administration announced its plan to prevent citizens from certain Muslim-majority countries from enterting the U.S., Rowling resurfaced an old, pre-election tweet from Pence where he said that calls to ban Muslims from entering the country are "offensive and unconstitutional." Rowling also added a Bible verse, writing, "'For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?' Matthew 16:26."
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After someone on Twitter cast doubt on the struggles of "despondent-looking" refugees because they looked " improbably well-fed," Rowling -- who worked for Amnesty International, long before her Potter success -- offered a quick and important reminder: "It's a little known fact that well-fed people can also die from bullets, bombs and gas chambers."
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When Brexit Secretary David Davis and UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson announced plans to exit the government, Rowling was not at all pleased, writing, "This is what happens when you have men in government who've been raised from birth to believe it's someone else's job to clean up after them. They throw tantrums when they finally make a mess no-one can fix."
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Former fans who don't like Rowling's political views are also fair game in her eyes. After one detractor tweeted Rowling to say she planned to burn her set of "Harry Potter" books, Rowling responded: "Well, the fumes from the DVDs might be toxic and I've still got your money, so by all means borrow my lighter."
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When yet another Twitter user told Rowling to stay out of politics, she had a quick (and true) retort: "In - Free - Countries - Anyone - Can - Talk - About - Politics. Try sounding out the syllables aloud, or ask a fluent reader to help."
British novelist rarely holds back on Twitter
J.K. Rowling is known for her fiery tweets almost as much as her "Harry Potter" books. Since the hit author opened her Twitter account in 2009, the Internet has been privy to the wit, charm, and -- most of all -- snark that made "Harry Potter" one of the best-selling series of all time. From President Donald Trump to Piers Morgan to anonymous Internet trolls, Rowling rarely holds back when something gets her attention. In honor of her 52nd birthday (on July 31), take a look at her snarkiest tweets.
Sean Burch
Tech reporter • sean.burch@thewrap.com • @SeanB44