Twitter forms group with outsiders to fight abuse

Twitter is forming a coalition with outside groups and experts to help shape its products and policies as it attempts to cut back on abuse and attract more users.

In a blog post published Tuesday, Twitter said the Twitter Trust  & Safety Council will be comprised of more than 40 groups, including advocacy organizations, researchers and safety experts who will review policies and the products Twitter rolls out.

"With hundreds of millions of Tweets sent per day, the volume of content on Twitter is massive, which makes it extraordinarily complex to strike the right balance between fighting abuse and speaking truth to power," says Patricia Cartes, Twitter's head of global policy outreach.

Participating groups include Anti-Bullying Pro, Cyber Civil Rights Initiative, Family Online Safety Institute, and the National Domestic Violence Hotline.

The introduction of the council is the latest response by Twitter to combat abuse received by some users. In late 2014, Twitter unveiled a series of new tools to make it easier to block abusive users and report them for harassment.

Twitter also introduced some small tweaks to its privacy policy in December detailing what actions qualify as abusive behavior, including an emphasis on "hateful conduct."

Former CEO Dick Costolo had said it was no secret "we suck at dealing with abuse and trolls on the platform." Current CEO Jack Dorsey tweeted Tuesday, "Twitter stands for freedom of expression, speaking truth to power, and empowering dialogue."

The moves  come as Twitter attempts to speed up growth in its monthly active user base, which has slowed in recent quarters. One of the complaints against the service is abuse waged at users, which critics say Twitter has done too little to curb.

Last quarter, Twitter missed Wall Street estimates with 320 million monthly active users. Twitter will release fourth quarter earnings Wednesday.

Follow Brett Molina on Twitter: @brettmolina23.