It’s time to say goodbye to Elon Musk’s X. Changes to blocking online harassment will endanger users.
- by Philadelphia Inquirer
- Oct 18, 2024
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» : What does Elon Musk, the worldâs richest man, want from Pennsylvania ... and America? | Will Bunch
Pre-Musk Twitter was far from perfect, but it did allow harassment victims to create at least some meaningful roadblocks that might slow such a snowball before it gained steam. The block button allowed you to keep a troll account from engaging with you or seeing your content. Third party mass block tools allowed you to block that troll accountâs followers, too, making it more difficult for them to collectively flood you with harassment. Moderation wasnât terrific, but generally you could get the site to ban users who directly threatened your life or your family, or posted explicit Nazi content.
Musk has already dismantled Xâs hate speech and harassment moderation system and implemented changes that make mass blocking unworkable. His latest step â allowing abusers and stalkers to freely view their targetsâ content even when blocked â takes aim at Xâs most basic and necessary anti-harassment feature. Trolls neednât bother to switch to shadow accounts to stalk anymore; their craft will be that much more efficient. That efficiency translates to speed, and that speed aids the snowballâs growth. The less friction a harasser experiences as they stir up hate, the greater their mass harassment campaignâs odds of success.
[Musk] seems determined to turn the website into an ever more welcoming echo chamber for the worst humanity has to offer.
And letâs be clear: âsuccessâ here can mean not only psychological torture but endangering offline terror for the targets. I speak from experience. When I was only a few weeks postpartum in 2021, I answered a sharp knock on our door and found armed police officers outside. Nazis had sent them there with a fake 911 call, hoping a SWAT team would shoot first and ask questions later. I was able to safely convince the cops to leave after a brief conversation; others have not been so lucky.
Since that time, Elon Musk has merrily made X an open haven for Nazis and abusers. Thereâs not much to be done to pressure him into change; the man has majority ownership and has very publicly leveled profanity-laced taunts at his own advertisers. He seems determined to turn the website into an echo chamber for the worst humanity has to offer, in particular violent misogynists, transphobes, and white supremacists.
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