- Twitter’s “head of editorial” in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa also serves as a part-time officer for the British Army’s information unit, the 77th Brigade, a new report from Middle East Eye revealed.
- This unit, which was created in 2015, is intended to use psychological operations and social media platforms such as Twitter or Facebook to help fight wars “in the information age.”
- Twitter confirmed that its employee’s dual role was reviewed by its compliance teams and is not currently in violation of its policies.
- Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.
Twitter’s “head of editorial” in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa also serves as a part-time officer for the British Army’s information unit in the UK, a new report revealed.
Middle East Eye, which was first to report the news, shared a screenshot of Gordon MacMillan’s LinkedIn page in which he listed his dual roles. His role in the army has since been removed from his page.
A source familiar with the matter told The Financial Times that MacMillan spends a few days a year acting as a consultant to Britain’s information warfare unit, the 77th Brigade.
The 77th Brigade was created in 2015 with the intention of using psychological operations and social media platforms such as Twitter or Facebook to help fight wars “in the information age.” It is made up of reservists and regular troops.
It writes online: "Our aim is to challenge the difficulties of modern warfare using non-lethal engagement and legitimate non-military levers as a means to adapt behaviours of the opposing forces and adversaries.
"77th Brigade is an agent of change; through targeted Information Activity and Outreach we contribute to the success of military objectives in support of Commanders, whilst reducing the cost in casualties and resources."
Neither MacMillan nor the UK Ministry of Defense (MOD) immediately responded to Business Insider's request for comment when contacted.
In a statement shared with The Financial Times, a spokesperson for the MOD said: "We employ specialist reserve personnel from a variety of civilian occupations in order to utilize the skills and experience of senior professionals.
"There is no relationship or agreement between 77th Brigade and Twitter, other than using it as a social media platform."
A spokesperson for Twitter told Business Insider that "Twitter is an open, neutral, and independent service.
"We do not allow our data services to be used for surveillance purposes or in any other manner inconsistent with people's expectation of privacy. Employees who pursue external volunteer opportunities are encouraged to do so in line with company policy."
In most cases, reservists would need to provide their employer's details to their commanding officer. However, according to the UK government guidelines, they do have the right to not to tell their employer they are a reservist if there's a good reason for it. For example, if it would put them at a disadvantage if their employer knew.
Twitter confirmed, however, that MacMillan's dual role was reviewed by its compliance teams and is not currently in violation of its policies.
MacMillan joined Twitter in 2013 after working at various media companies. He previously trained at Sandhurst, the British military academy before studying journalism and then media studies at Cardiff and Bournemouth universities.
