The Guardian exits X, calling the platform 'Toxic'

 JournalismPakistan.com |  Published: 14 November 2024 |  JP Staff Report

The Guardian has announced its departure from platform X, citing concerns over toxic content and political influence. Despite leaving, they will still engage with readers through articles and maintain some reporting activities on the platform.

Summary

LONDON—The Guardian has called X a toxic platform and left it, saying its negatives now outweigh the benefits of being on it.

"This is something we have been considering for a while given the often disturbing content promoted or found on the platform," the paper said in a message to its subscribers. It said 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 its owner, Elon Musk, has been able to use its influence to shape political discourse."

The paper said X users will still be able to access its articles, and the nature of live news reporting means "we will still occasionally embed content from X within our article pages." The Guardian reporters still 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."

Saying that social media is an important tool for news organizations, the paper maintained that "at this point, X now plays a diminished role in promoting our work."

KEY POINTS:

• The Guardian calls X a toxic platform.
• Concerns over disturbing content prompted the exit.
• The US presidential election highlighted negative aspects.
• Articles will still be accessible to X users.
• Reporters can use X for newsgathering despite exit.