Guardian Cuts Ties with Musk’s X, Citing Platform’s “Toxic” Environment

The Guardian has announced it will no longer post content on Elon Musk’s social media platform, X, previously known as Twitter. In a statement to readers on Wednesday, November 13, the news organization cited “often disturbing content” and a rise in toxic discourse as reasons for its departure.

“We wanted to let readers know that we will no longer post on any official Guardian editorial accounts on the social media site X,” the Guardian’s statement said.

The Guardian, which operated over 80 accounts on X with around 27 million followers, cited the prevalence of far-right conspiracy theories, racist content, and the platform’s coverage of the US presidential election as contributing factors. “This is something we have been considering for a while,” it noted, “and the recent US presidential election only underscored what we’ve long believed: X has become a toxic media platform.”

The platform’s content moderation policies, overseen by Musk, have been widely criticized by anti-hate speech organizations and the EU, particularly after he reinstated banned accounts like those of Alex Jones, Andrew Tate, and Tommy Robinson.

The Guardian clarified that while its official accounts will no longer post on X, readers can still share Guardian articles on the platform, and reporters may use X for newsgathering purposes under existing guidelines.

“Social media can be an important tool for reaching new audiences,” the Guardian stated, “but X now plays a diminished role in promoting our work. We invite our readers to come directly to theguardian.com to support our journalism.”

In response, Musk took to X, dismissing the Guardian as “irrelevant” and a “laboriously vile propaganda machine.”