Yesterday I mentioned about some prominent Twitter users bolting from Twitter now that Elon Musk has taken the platform over and creating the perception, if not fact that racism and misinformation have skyrocketed on the platform since his arrival. But the question is, where are these people going. Wired has the answer:
Rather than rushing to the exits and deleting their accounts, many with reservations about Musk’s takeover are making plans similar to LaBelle’s. They’re giving out information for followers to find them on Discord or Mastodon, a decentralized microblogging platform that most closely resembles Twitter.
Mastodon is already benefiting from speculation about Twitter’s new owner. Some 18,000 people signed up for Mastodon accounts between October 20 and 27, says Eugen Rochko, the platform’s CEO. As of October 28, it had 381,113 active users. Mastodon’s Twitter handle is also being used a lot across Twitter by people announcing new Mastodon accounts, Rochko says.
Many people tweeting Friday morning under #TwitterMigration said they weren’t ready to abandon Twitter entirely but had set up Mastodon accounts in anticipation of sweeping changes. Some in academic or tech communities on Twitter put their new Mastodon profiles in their bios or Twitter names. “Looks like #Mastodon is trending on Twitter as more and more people are announcing their new profiles,” the company wrote Thursday.
So Twitter users are clearly hedging their bets. If Musk either proves that he won’t destroy the platform and it won’t become a toxic swamp of negativity, then users may stick around. But if the worst happens, then they have a “plan B” in place. The thing is that these services can’t possibly replace Twitter, nor can they likely handle the large influx of people. But it illustrates the issue that Musk has. Nobody thinks he’s capable of running Twitter in a way that encourages people to be on the platform. Which means that it’s better for them to make plans to head to the hills rather than stick around and see Twitter degrade into a toxic swamp. Musk must realize that has he’s said that “no major decisions would be made until he had convened a council of people with “widely diverse viewpoints” on moderation.” But I don’t buy that as this is a guy who makes decisions based on impulse rather than discipline and facts. And clearly nobody else does either.
I hate to say it, but Twitter is likely doomed and it’s all Elon Musk’s fault. But I am free to be proven otherwise. Though I too am making plans just in case the worst happens.
Like this:
Like Loading...
Related
This entry was posted on October 30, 2022 at 2:59 pm and is filed under Commentary with tags Twitter. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Discord, Mastodon, And Other Services Seeing Huge Influx Of Twitter Users As They Make Plans To Flee From An Elon Musk Controlled Twitter
Yesterday I mentioned about some prominent Twitter users bolting from Twitter now that Elon Musk has taken the platform over and creating the perception, if not fact that racism and misinformation have skyrocketed on the platform since his arrival. But the question is, where are these people going. Wired has the answer:
Rather than rushing to the exits and deleting their accounts, many with reservations about Musk’s takeover are making plans similar to LaBelle’s. They’re giving out information for followers to find them on Discord or Mastodon, a decentralized microblogging platform that most closely resembles Twitter.
Mastodon is already benefiting from speculation about Twitter’s new owner. Some 18,000 people signed up for Mastodon accounts between October 20 and 27, says Eugen Rochko, the platform’s CEO. As of October 28, it had 381,113 active users. Mastodon’s Twitter handle is also being used a lot across Twitter by people announcing new Mastodon accounts, Rochko says.
Many people tweeting Friday morning under #TwitterMigration said they weren’t ready to abandon Twitter entirely but had set up Mastodon accounts in anticipation of sweeping changes. Some in academic or tech communities on Twitter put their new Mastodon profiles in their bios or Twitter names. “Looks like #Mastodon is trending on Twitter as more and more people are announcing their new profiles,” the company wrote Thursday.
So Twitter users are clearly hedging their bets. If Musk either proves that he won’t destroy the platform and it won’t become a toxic swamp of negativity, then users may stick around. But if the worst happens, then they have a “plan B” in place. The thing is that these services can’t possibly replace Twitter, nor can they likely handle the large influx of people. But it illustrates the issue that Musk has. Nobody thinks he’s capable of running Twitter in a way that encourages people to be on the platform. Which means that it’s better for them to make plans to head to the hills rather than stick around and see Twitter degrade into a toxic swamp. Musk must realize that has he’s said that “no major decisions would be made until he had convened a council of people with “widely diverse viewpoints” on moderation.” But I don’t buy that as this is a guy who makes decisions based on impulse rather than discipline and facts. And clearly nobody else does either.
I hate to say it, but Twitter is likely doomed and it’s all Elon Musk’s fault. But I am free to be proven otherwise. Though I too am making plans just in case the worst happens.
Share this:
Like this:
Related
This entry was posted on October 30, 2022 at 2:59 pm and is filed under Commentary with tags Twitter. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.