The Guardian Quits X Saying it is Being Used to “Promote Hate Speech and Influence Politics”

The Guardian Quits X Saying it is Being Used to “Promote Hate Speech and Influence Politics”

November 14, 2024 – The Guardian newspaper this week has reported that it had been contemplating ending its use of X for some time due to “frequent exposure to disturbing content on the platform, including far-right conspiracy theories and racist material.”

It specifically criticised Musk, noting that recent U.S. election events reinforced its perception of X as a “toxic” platform, with Musk actively using it to influence political discourse.

This is the statement in full:

“Yesterday we announced that we will no longer post on any official Guardian editorial accounts on the social media site X (formerly Twitter). We think that the benefits of being on X are now outweighed by the negatives and that resources could be better used promoting our content elsewhere.

“This is something we have been considering for a while given the often disturbing content promoted or found on the platform. The US presidential election campaign served only to underline what we have considered for a long time: that X is a toxic media platform and that its owner, Elon Musk, has been able to use its influence to shape political discourse.

“X users will still be able to share our articles, and the nature of live news reporting means we will still occasionally embed content from X within our article pages.

“Our reporters will also be able to carry on using the site for newsgathering purposes, just as they use other social networks in which we don’t officially engage.

“Social media can be an important tool for news organisations and help us to reach new audiences but, at this point, X now plays a diminished role in promoting our work. Our journalism is available and open to all on our website and we would prefer people to come to theguardian.com and support our work there. You can also enjoy our journalism on the Guardian app and discover new pieces via our brilliant set of regular newsletters. 

“Thankfully, we can do this because our business model doesn’t rely on viral content tailored to the whims of the social media giants’ algorithms – instead we’re funded directly by our readers.”

Musk was among the most prominent supporters of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump and was recently appointed as one of two leaders of a new “government efficiency department.”

In an interview with Politico last month, outgoing EU Justice Commissioner Věra Jourová called Musk a “promoter of evil,” to which Musk responded by labelling her as “the epitome of banal, bureaucratic evil.”

The Guardian’s Wednesday statement clarified that its journalists would continue to use X for gathering news, though the platform would now play a “reduced role in promoting our work.”

In May, X (formerly Twitter) updated it’s content policy to allow users to “share consensually produced and distributed adult nudity or sexual behavior (sic), provided it’s properly labeled and not prominently displayed.”

This update information also prompted this masthead to quit the platform.

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