The Guardian leaves X, calling it a ‘toxic media platform’

The Guardian newspaper has announced it will stop posting on X, formerly Twitter, describing the social media platform as “toxic”.

The news outlet wrote on its website on Wednesday that it had considered the decision for a while due to the “often disturbing content promoted or found on the platform”, but the US election earlier in November “underlined” its decision.

“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 Guardian wrote.

“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 that its owner, Elon Musk, has been able to use its influence to shape political discourse.”

Responding to The Telegraph, who reported on The Guardian’s decision, Musk posted on X: “They are irrelevant.”

The Guardian said that users will still be able to share their articles and would “occasionally embed content from X” within its articles, given “the nature of live news reporting”.

It added that reporters will also be able to carry on using the site for news-gathering purposes, just as they use other social networks which they do not have accounts for.

The Guardian, which has 10.8 million followers on its main X account, is the first major UK news outlet to leave the social media platform since Musk acquired it in 2022 for 44 billion dollars (£38 billion).

Both X and Musk have come under increased scrutiny since the businessman took over the site, with the billionaire himself engaging with misleading content and accounts known for spreading misinformation on a number of occasions.

In the wake of the Southport stabbings, in which three young girls were stabbed to death, he posted a number of images and memes linked to the anti-immigration protests and disorder in Britain.

The SpaceX and Tesla boss was a prominent supporter of Donald Trump during the US presidential election campaign and used his personal account with almost 205 million followers to endorse the Republican candidate.

On Wednesday it was announced that Musk would jointly lead a new government efficiency advisory panel for the incoming Trump administration.