Twitter has recently suspended the accounts of Aaron Greenspan, a prominent critic of Tesla and Elon Musk, and his online database, PlainSite. The suspension occurred on Tuesday and affected both PlainSite’s account, which had over 24,000 followers, and Greenspan’s personal account, with about 2,500 followers.
PlainSite, founded by Greenspan in 2011, is an online platform that makes state and federal court filings and other public records freely accessible to users. The platform offers analytics features to paying subscribers to help them gain insights about attorneys, judges, government offices, and the law. The platform has been known to meticulously track litigation involving major U.S. companies, including Tesla and Twitter, among others.
The suspension comes as a surprise given the recent promises of free speech by Elon Musk, who became Twitter’s executive chairman after acquiring the company, and the newly appointed CEO Linda Yaccarino. Both executives have emphasized the importance of maintaining an “unfiltered exchange of information” and the freedom to speak one’s mind.
Greenspan’s criticism of Tesla began in 2018, following the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s charge against Musk and Tesla for civil securities fraud. Since then, Greenspan has made court filings and public records available on PlainSite that have revealed various issues concerning Tesla and Twitter, particularly since Musk took over Twitter in October 2022.
Despite requests, Twitter has not provided any information as to why the accounts were suspended, and Greenspan is currently seeking a reinstatement of both accounts.