THE Guardian has announced it will no longer be posting on social media platform Twitter/X.
It is the first major UK news outlet to quit the platform, as it said the benefits of remaining on Twitter "are now outweighed by the negatives".
Whilst official editorial accounts will no longer post, users can still share articles published by The Guardian.
In an article on Wednesday, the news organisation wrote: "We wanted to let readers know 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 journalism elsewhere.
"This is something we have been considering for a while given the often disturbing content promoted or found on the platform, including far-right conspiracy theories and racism."
The organisation said the US presidential election campaign showed that Twitter/X is "a toxic media platform" and that billionaire owner Elon Musk (above) – who was recently appointed to president-elect Donald Trump's cabinet – has been able to "use its influence to shape political discourse".
It added that reporters will still use the platform for news gathering purposes, and that posts from Twitter/X may occasionally be embedded in articles "due to the nature of live reporting".
Musk bought the platform in 2022. Since his takeover, the number of users leaving Twitter/X for other sites such as Threads and Bluesky has increased, with Bluesky picking up more than 700,000 new users in the week since the US election, according to The Guardian.
A study from the Pew Research Center in the US published in June found that since Musk took over Twitter/X, the site has become more popular with conservative users and those who identify with right-wing politics.
Musk responded to The Guardian's announcement by calling the organisation "irrelevant".
They are a laboriously vile propaganda machine
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 13, 2024
In one of several posts on Twitter/X, Musk called The Guardian "a laboriously vile propaganda machine".
He also said: "They are a dying publication."
Readers can find The National on Bluesky by clicking here or by following @scotnational.bsky.social.
