Monday 12 August 2024

Leaving Twitter & where I'll be on social media


Twitter is no more. Musk has shot the blue bird. The site is unrecognisable from a few years ago. There were always some hate posts, some nastiness, some threats but these have been amplified since Elon Musk took over the site, renamed it X (a hard, unfriendly name), and curtailed most moderation, allowing hatemongers and conspiracy theorists free reign. And now Musk has joined them, sharing and agreeing with their posts, and posting ones of his own. In the past the owners of the site seemed neutral, perhaps too liberal in what was allowed, and not ones who actively encouraged the worst people. That’s changed.

I joined Twitter 15 years ago and quickly became part of an outdoor and conservation community, enjoying many threads and debates. These weren’t always calm and even-tempered. There were rows, over everything from important matters like climate change to niche ones like backpacking meal reviews. People were blocked, unblocked, blocked again. Overall it was polite though. That community started to fade a few years ago. It’s barely hanging on now. My engagement with others has dwindled to a fraction of what it was, mainly, I think, because I haven’t paid for a blue tick, something I would never do.

I have been thinking about closing my account for many weeks. Musk’s recent appalling behaviour has made up my mind. I am going. Nostalgia for what Twitter once was is not enough. Having lots of followers, far more than on any other social media platform, is not enough. By staying I continue to support Musk. We may think of ourselves as users of social media but we are also the product. Our numbers are what Musk sells to get advertising. I don’t want to be part of this anymore.

I posted a last Tweet saying I was leaving. I read the arguments for staying of George Monbiot, Michael Rosen and others who I follow and admire. Stay and fight, they say. But staying merely supports Musk. I think it better to leave. If enough do and only the haters, racists, and conspiracy mongers are left then X might collapse as more and more advertisers decide they don’t want to be associated with it. That, I think, is the way forward.

I will miss many people and groups whose posts I’ve enjoyed. I hope to see them on other sites. Some I do already.

If you want to find me on social media I’m here:

Facebook

Threads

Mastodon

Bluesky

Instagram

That’s a lot! One, I guess, will come to dominate as far as my interests and contacts go but I don’t know which one yet. I’ve been on Facebook even longer than on Twitter and it’s the busiest of those five for me at present. I’ve been on Instagram for many years too but until recently I only used it to post occasional phone photos. Threads, the third and newest Meta social media app, I joined last year and am still learning about. It is the one most like Twitter. These three are all owned by another tech billionaire of course, Mark Zuckerberg. So far, he’s preferable to Musk.

Crowd-funded and non-profit, Mastodon is a bit different and a bit more complex. I like it but using it can be challenging. Over a year after joining I’m not sure I’m using it to its full potential.

Bluesky I only joined a few weeks ago and I don’t know much about it yet.

So it’s goodbye to what was once Twitter. I hope to see many of you on different social media

9 comments:

  1. Stay and fight…for what?

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  2. I left twitter when Musk tooover. Just this weekend I left Threads as I saw it was becoming as toxic as twitter. Facebook is now becoming a challenge. A group I run has 10,000 members and I find myself spending a lot of time monitoring, dealing with bots etc,. I'm really doing Zuckerbergs work while he reaps the profits of advertising!
    Insta is probably my favourite as it hasn't denigrated into the shambles the others have! but the reach is limited! Maybe that's the way it should be!

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  3. My sentiments exactly - but much more eloquently put

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  4. A good move Chris, I left when I was seriously ill over 2 years ago. I can't say I've missed it! Other than Instagram (which I barely use) and YouTube ( which I enjoy filming for (when I'm in the mood) I've stepped away from the social media circus.
    Enjoy the "other" social media platforms.

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  5. I too have left the whole social media show, but I'm not sure it's necessary as ballast for a good well written blog like your Chris.

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  6. I agree that X is a hard and unfriendly name. I didn't understand why he would choose to change a name that was recognisable and widely known to one that was difficult to use in simple speech. I believe he uses the letter X in other branding but he seems determined to undermine Twitter as a brand.

    And threatening to sue companies for not advertising on his toxic site. Ha ha ha!

    I've been following you on Mastodon since we both moved there. I'm sure there'll be plenty more people making that journey.

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  7. Don’t blame you. I left quite some time ago. I do miss the sharing of relevant information and the friendly people but it isn’t a platform I want to belong to. I now don’t do any media apart from the blog. I know you stopped following my blog because I didn’t agree with your politics but positive debate is always good even if we disagree with the subject. Good luck with which ever of your platforms performs best for you.

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  8. X is a suitable name as Musk is a Putin fan. The letter used by Russian invasion forces is Z. Now you don't have to wonder Y that platform is messed up.

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