Linda Yaccarino is leaving X

I think the “everyone is here” feeling is because the media outlets use it quite a bit. So even though mostly everyone is not on Twitter it felt like anyone who is anyone was on Twitter. I don’t really miss the FOMO that was intended to produce but I imagine if you played along it validated the FOMO some how.

To be honest though it is still by far the best place to get "news" about (very recent) current affairs. Obviously there is an incredible amount of disinformation on it, but if you can filter that out mentally (though I don't know how possible that is), you tend to get a far more 'real time' take on things.

Me and a friend were talking about this before - for big news stories I/we would instinctively put rolling news on. Now it's usually Twitter I check.

This is compounded by the fact that so many political events 'happen' on Twitter/X (and for Trump, Truth Social then screenshotted onto Twitter). Even without Trump I would say the majority of UK political 'intrigue' is done directly on twitter.

So I think it's actually the other way round; media outlets use it quite a bit because instead of press conferences and what not a lot of news comes straight onto it.

Btw, this isn't too say traditional journalism doesn't have a place - it absolutely does and most of the current affairs content I read is on that. But for 'fast moving' events Twitter has managed to keep its place in my eyes, which I'm surprised about to be honest. Bluesky does not have anywhere near the same momentum which really shows you how important network effects are.

> (though I don't know how possible that is)

Not possible if you are exposed to it periodically. So the value of 'news' source seems to be negative.

I loved seeing Dave Chappelle dismiss his critics by quipping "Twitter is not a real place." Changed my whole view of social media. It's only seems real if you're on the inside of it.

And yea, I would question the utility of getting a 'real time feed' of what rumors people think they heard.

Huh. I find it worse than useless for current news.

I also keep reminding myself that more Americans play golf than use Twitter

You really just need the journalists tweeting without an intermediary editor to make it more useful than any news that you can pay for. Plus, being less american centric is a benefit, not a drawback, unless the only news you care about is american.

People post plenty of videos of things happening. Often clipped so that context is removed (for example Manchester airport thugs getting kicked by police, without the preceding part where they attacked the police before that).

i see your perspective. Until Musk , it included the scope of publishers that were 1-3 degrees removed from mainstream media and Hollywood.

Post-musk it’s been rebooted into engagement farms and quasi-right-wing influencers.

For the first few months it felt refreshing because all of the once censored (or downranked) spicy content now received visibility.

Now it’s pretty repetitive and lame in its own way.

Every time I open my mute list I resent using the app.