Nov 27, 2019 - Technology

Twitter plans to purge inactive accounts

Photo: Omar Marques/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Twitter is warning its inactive users — those who haven't logged on in over six months — that their accounts will be deleted unless they sign in by Dec. 11, The Verge first reported Tuesday.

Why it matters, via Axios' Ina Fried: By deleting accounts, Twitter could hurt its overall metrics as well as the follower counts of individual users. Dormant user names could also become available to people who want to make more frequent use of the service.

  • But what Twitter loses in absolute user numbers, it could gain through increased credibility of those numbers.

Where it stands: After Dec. 11, Twitter will remove accounts "over many months — not just on a single day," a Twitter spokesperson told the Verge. The effort is part of Twitter's aim to "present more accurate, credible information people can trust" across the platform.

Go deeper: Twitter refines political ad rules

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Dave Lawler
Updated 25 mins ago - World

At least 100 killed, 4,000 injured after massive explosion rocks Beirut

Photo: Anwar Amro/AFP via Getty Images

A major explosion has slammed central Beirut, Lebanon, damaging buildings as far as several miles away and injuring scores of people.

Driving the news: At least 100 people have been killed and over 4,000 injured in the blast — and the death toll is likely to rise, the Lebanese Red Cross said, per AP. Prime Minister Hassan Diab said the explosions occurred at a warehouse that had been storing 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate for the past six years.

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Axios
Updated 1 hour ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

  1. Global: Total confirmed cases as of 1:30 a.m. ET: 18,540,119 — Total deaths: 700,647 — Total recoveries — 11,134,715 — Map.
  2. U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 1:30 a.m. ET: 4,771,087 — Total deaths: 156,801 — Total recoveries: 1,528,979 — Total tests: 57,543,852 — Map.
  3. States: New York City health commissioner resigns in protest of De Blasio's coronavirus response — Local governments go to war over schools.
  4. Public health: 59% of Americans support nationwide 2-week stay-at-home order in NPR poll.
  5. Politics: Trump's national security adviser returns to work after coronavirus recovery — Republicans push to expand small business loan program.
  6. Sports: Indy 500 to be held without fans — Rafael Nadal opts out of U.S. Open.
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Rebecca Falconer
Updated 3 hours ago - Science

In photos: Storm Isaias lashes the East Coast

Floodwaters in Muhlenberg Township, Pennsylvania, a result of Tropical Storm Isaias moving along the East Coast on Tuesday. Photo: Ben Hasty/MediaNews Group/Reading Eagle via Getty Images

Isaias became a post-tropical cyclone as it moved into southeast Canada late Tuesday after pummeling the East Coast for much of the day with heavy rains and wind —trigging tornadoes, floods and leaving millions without power. At least six people have lost their lives in the storm.

The big picture: Isaias made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane in North Carolina late Monday before being downgraded. It dumped heavy rain across Florida as a tropical storm over the weekend and on July 31 lashed the Bahamas and parts of Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic as a Category 1 hurricane.

See photos (<1 min. read)Arrow