Social networking platform X, formerly known as Twitter, will remove the feature enabling users to block other accounts, owner Elon Musk said Friday.
The protective feature is widely used by X users to prevent abuse, bullying, and stalking. The owners of blocked accounts are unable to contact, follow or view posts on the timeline of the person that has blocked them.
It looks like the feature will no longer be available, however.
Musk, in another controversial update to the already troubled platform, has disclosed that blocking would be “deleted as a ‘feature’, except for DMs”. His statement suggests X users will still have the ability to mute certain accounts, but not restrict them entirely.
Following Musk’s revelation, context was added by readers to his tweet regarding the feature. “Blocking is a basic safety feature that allows basic protection for victims of abuse and stalking. Removing this feature would compromise the safety of many people in social media.”
In response to the post, Musk commented, “It makes no sense.”
It makes no sense
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 18, 2023
Removing the crucial feature might land X in trouble with Apple and Google’s parent company, Alphabet. In their guidelines for App Store and Google Play, respectively, both tech giants mandate the availability of the option to block accounts, including those propagating online abuse. The fate of X on app stores has yet to be seen, as neither of the two have commented on the development.
Additionally, there is no clarity as to whether the accounts that are currently blocked will be unblocked by default if the feature is suspended.
X’s CEO Linda Yaccarino, on the other hand, remarked that user safety is “number one priority” on the platform. “And we’re building something better than the current state of block and mute. Please keep the feedback coming,” she said.
Our users’ safety on X is our number one priority. And we’re building something better than the current state of block and mute. Please keep the feedback coming. https://t.co/ekIvyOhRqQ
— Linda Yaccarino (@lindayaX) August 19, 2023
Twitter, now X, had been a leading social media platform for journalists, rights defenders, and researchers. But after Musk bought the company for $44 billion in October last year, the platform descended into chaos and uncertainty with regards to measures it offered to ensure user safety.
Following his acquisition, Musk fired several crucial teams from the company, including the human rights and ethical AI teams. The billionaire’s axing of safety and well-being departments led to an avalanche of resignations from key executives and other employees, who were in charge of important operations at the firm.
Since Musk’s high-profile takeover, X has suffered two major global shutdowns, which the industry experts have ascribed to the departure of key executives and other professionals.
Moreover, the billionaire, who keeps hailing himself as a “free speech absolutist”, has imposed a number of arbitrary restrictions on the kind of content posted across Twitter, including controversial bans on parody accounts and handles sharing information that is already publicly available elsewhere online.
Musk also claims hate speech has declined on X under his management, which research from advocacy groups and academic institutions has empirically refuted.
