Twitter withdrawal is a nightmare.
Indeed. I shall not call it X; instead, I will stick with its previous name.
280 characters have been militarized by outrage-peddling algorithms to control hearts, minds, and evenings with constant scrolling of anguished replies and pornographic content.
The decision to remain on Twitter seems hopeless: either pull yourself out of the toxic sinkhole or continue to be miserable while enabling a hidden machine to incite polarization for financial gain.
It just stinks to break carefully cultivated relationships and lose years’ worth of digital memories to oblivion.
Both choices were painful, akin to two rotten apples imparting the same bad flavor.
However, signs of change are beginning to surface, including a growing disenchantment with the platform’s moderation guidelines, algorithms that exaggerate extremes, and unstable behavior in the wake of Elon Musk’s manic antics and unpredictable ownership.
It was no longer taboo to delete one’s account — it was formerly unimaginable.
This feeling of no longer being “at home” on Twitter, however, stands in stark contrast to the overwhelming challenges that arise when attempting to leave Twitter’s comfort zone in search of new microblogging opportunities.
The Gravity of a Foul Planet
Effects of Networking
Strong network effects that have been developed since 2006 provide enormous obstacles to leaving. We cannot simply transplant the depth of our interwoven buddy networks and follower graphs we have accumulated over the years somewhere else.
The thought of having to start organic growth from scratch on new platforms when we lack the capabilities to transfer our digital relationships and conversational histories is intimidating.
The problem is made worse by the cold start issue and the diminished visibility resulting from the loss of algorithmic power.
Features of Table Stakes
Transition attempts are hampered by a lack of feature parity.
