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[Skip to content](https://techcrunch.com/2021/01/08/why-twitter-banned-president-trump/#wp--skip-link--target) THIS WEEK ONLY: Save up to \$500 on your Disrupt pass. Offer ends April 10, 11:59 p.m. PT. 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That decision, made in light of his encouragement for Wednesday’s violent invasion of the U.S. Capitol, might seem sudden for anyone not particularly familiar with his Twitter presence. In reality, Twitter gave Trump [many](https://techcrunch.com/2020/08/23/twitter-hides-trump-tweet-behind-notice-for-potentially-dissuading-people-from-voting/), [many](https://techcrunch.com/2020/04/17/coronavirus-protests-trump-liberate-minnesota-tweets-facebook-twitter/) [second chances](https://techcrunch.com/2020/10/06/trump-flu-covid-misinformation-facebook-and-twitter/) over his four years as president, keeping him on the platform due to the company’s belief that speech by world leaders is in the public interest, even if it breaks the rules. > [Twitter permanently bans President Trump](https://techcrunch.com/2021/01/08/trump-banned-from-twitter/) Now that Trump’s gone for good, we have a pretty interesting glimpse into the policy decision making that led Twitter to bring the hammer down on Friday. The company first announced Trump’s ban in a [series of tweets from its @TwitterSafety account](https://twitter.com/TwitterSafety/status/1347684877634838528) but also [linked to a blog post detailing its thinking](https://blog.twitter.com/en_us/topics/company/2020/suspension.html). In that deep dive, the company explains that it gave Trump one last chance [after suspending](https://techcrunch.com/2021/01/06/twitter-locks-trump-out-of-his-account-for-at-least-12-hours/) [and then reinstating](https://techcrunch.com/2021/01/07/is-trump-back-on-twitter/) his account for [violations made on Wednesday](https://techcrunch.com/2021/01/06/twitter-pop-up-trump-video-capitol-rally/). But the following day, a pair of tweets the president made pushed him over the line. Twitter said those tweets, pictured below, were not examined on a standalone basis, but rather in the context of his recent behavior and this week’s events. “… We have determined that these Tweets are in violation of the Glorification of Violence Policy and the user @realDonaldTrump should be immediately permanently suspended from the service,” Twitter wrote. Techcrunch event ### This Week Only: Save up to \$500 for Disrupt 2026 #### ***Offer ends April 10, 11:59 p.m. PT*** Your next round. Your next hire. Your next breakout opportunity. Find it at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, where 10,000+ founders, investors, and tech leaders gather for three days of 250+ tactical sessions, powerful introductions, and market-defining innovation. Register now to secure these savings. ### This Week Only: Save up to \$500 for Disrupt 2026 #### ***Offer ends April 10, 11:59 p.m. PT*** Your next round. Your next hire. Your next breakout opportunity. Find it at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, where 10,000+ founders, investors, and tech leaders gather for three days of 250+ tactical sessions, powerful introductions, and market-defining innovation. Register now to secure these savings. San Francisco, CA \| October 13-15, 2026 [REGISTER NOW](https://techcrunch.com/events/tc-disrupt-2026/?utm_source=tc&utm_medium=ad&utm_campaign=disrupt2026&utm_content=flashsale&promo=tc_inline_ebflashsale&display=) This is how the company [explained its reasoning, point by point](https://blog.twitter.com/en_us/topics/company/2020/suspension.html): > - “President Trump’s statement that he will not be attending the Inauguration is being received by a number of his supporters as further confirmation that the election was not legitimate and is seen as him disavowing his previous claim made via two Tweets (1, 2) by his Deputy Chief of Staff, Dan Scavino, that there would be an ‘orderly transition’ on January 20th. > - “The second Tweet may also serve as encouragement to those potentially considering violent acts that the Inauguration would be a ‘safe’ target, as he will not be attending. > - “The use of the words ‘American Patriots’ to describe some of his supporters is also being interpreted as support for those committing violent acts at the US Capitol. > - “The mention of his supporters having a ‘GIANT VOICE long into the future’ and that ‘They will not be disrespected or treated unfairly in any way, shape or form!!!’ is being interpreted as further indication that President Trump does not plan to facilitate an ‘orderly transition’ and instead that he plans to continue to support, empower, and shield those who believe he won the election. > - “Plans for future armed protests have already begun proliferating on and off-Twitter, including a proposed secondary attack on the US Capitol and state capitol buildings on January 17, 2021.” All of that is pretty intuitive, though his most fervent supporters aren’t likely to agree. Ultimately these decisions, as much as they do come down to stated policies, involve a lot of subjective analysis and interpretation. Try as social media companies might to let algorithms make the hard calls for them, the buck stops with a group of humans trying to figure out the best course of action. Twitter’s explanation here offers a a rare totally transparent glimpse into how social networks decide what stays and what goes. It’s a big move for Twitter — one that many people reasonably believe should have been made months if not years ago — and it’s useful to have what is so often an inscrutable high-level decision making process laid out plainly and publicly for all to see. > [President Trump responds to Twitter account ban in tweet storm from @POTUS account](https://techcrunch.com/2021/01/08/president-trump-responds-to-twitter-account-ban-in-tweet-storm-from-potus-account/) Topics [Capitol Riot](https://techcrunch.com/tag/capitol-riot/), [Donald Trump](https://techcrunch.com/tag/donald-trump/), [government](https://techcrunch.com/tag/government/), [Media & Entertainment](https://techcrunch.com/category/media-entertainment/), [Twitter](https://techcrunch.com/tag/twitter/)  Taylor Hatmaker Culture Editor Taylor covered social media, gaming and culture at TechCrunch. [View Bio](https://techcrunch.com/author/taylor-hatmaker/)  April 30 San Francisco, CA StrictlyVC kicks off the year in SF. Get in the room for unfiltered fireside chats with industry leaders, insider VC insights, and high-value connections that actually move the needle. **Tickets are limited.** [**REGISTER NOW**](https://techcrunch.com/events/strictlyvc-san-francisco-2026/?utm_source=tc&utm_medium=ad&utm_campaign=svcsf2026&utm_content=ticketsales&promo=rightrail&display=) ## Most Popular - ### [Google quietly launched an AI dictation app that works offline](https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/07/google-quietly-releases-an-offline-first-ai-dictation-app-on-ios/) - [Ivan Mehta](https://techcrunch.com/author/ivan-mehta/) - ### [Apple’s foldable iPhone is on track to launch in September, report says](https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/07/apples-foldable-iphone-is-on-track-to-launch-in-september-report-says/) - [Aisha Malik](https://techcrunch.com/author/aisha-malik/) - ### [AI startup Rocket offers vibe McKinsey-style reports at a fraction of the cost](https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/06/indian-startup-rocket-wants-its-ai-to-do-mckinsey-style-consulting-at-a-fraction-of-the-cost/) - [Jagmeet Singh](https://techcrunch.com/author/jagmeet-singh/) - ### [North Korea’s hijack of one of the web’s most used open source projects was likely weeks in the making](https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/06/north-koreas-hijack-of-one-of-the-webs-most-used-open-source-projects-was-likely-weeks-in-the-making/) - [Zack Whittaker](https://techcrunch.com/author/zack-whittaker/) Techcrunch event ### This Week Only: Save up to \$500 for Disrupt 2026 #### ***Offer ends April 10, 11:59 p.m. PT*** Your next round. Your next hire. Your next breakout opportunity. Find it at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, where 10,000+ founders, investors, and tech leaders gather for three days of 250+ tactical sessions, powerful introductions, and market-defining innovation. Register now to secure these savings. ### This Week Only: Save up to \$500 for Disrupt 2026 #### ***Offer ends April 10, 11:59 p.m. PT*** Your next round. Your next hire. Your next breakout opportunity. Find it at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, where 10,000+ founders, investors, and tech leaders gather for three days of 250+ tactical sessions, powerful introductions, and market-defining innovation. Register now to secure these savings. San Francisco, CA \| October 13-15, 2026 [REGISTER NOW](https://techcrunch.com/events/tc-disrupt-2026/?utm_source=tc&utm_medium=ad&utm_campaign=disrupt2026&utm_content=flashsale&promo=tc_inline_ebflashsale&display=) - ### [In Japan, the robot isn’t coming for your job; it’s filling the one nobody wants](https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/05/japan-is-proving-experimental-physical-ai-is-ready-for-the-real-world/) - [Kate Park](https://techcrunch.com/author/kate-park/) - ### [Embattled startup Delve has ‘parted ways’ with Y Combinator](https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/04/embattled-startup-delve-has-parted-ways-with-y-combinator/) - [Anthony Ha](https://techcrunch.com/author/anthony-ha/) - ### [Anthropic says Claude Code subscribers will need to pay extra for OpenClaw usage](https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/04/anthropic-says-claude-code-subscribers-will-need-to-pay-extra-for-openclaw-support/) - [Anthony Ha](https://techcrunch.com/author/anthony-ha/) Keep reading  **Image Credits:**Bryce Durbin / TechCrunch [Media & Entertainment](https://techcrunch.com/category/media-entertainment/) # EFF is the latest organization to leave X [Sarah Perez](https://techcrunch.com/author/sarah-perez/) 2:26 PM PDT · April 9, 2026 X’s decline in engagement and its ability to drive traffic is the topic du jour, with several days of bad PR for the Elon Musk-owned social network. Over the weekend, X’s head of product, Nikita Bier, and data analyst Nate Silver, previously of FiveThirtyEight, [feuded over](https://x.com/NateSilver538/status/2041901751192682643) whether or not X was still capable of sending traffic to publishers. This was followed by a [report from NiemanLab](https://www.niemanlab.org/2026/04/do-links-hurt-news-publishers-on-twitter-our-analysis-suggests-yes/) on Wednesday, which suggested that adding links to X posts is bad for engagement. On Thursday, the prominent digital rights group and nonprofit EFF (Electronic Frontier Foundation) [announced](https://x.com/EFF/status/2042278157609480566) it, too, was leaving X after seeing decreasing returns from its posts. > After almost twenty years on the platform, EFF is logging off of X. > > This isn’t a decision we made lightly, but it might be overdue. (1/5) > > — EFF (@EFF) [April 9, 2026](https://twitter.com/EFF/status/2042278157609480566?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) In [a blog post,](https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/04/eff-leaving-x) EFF’s social media manager, Kenyatta Thomas, said that leaving X after almost 20 years on the platform wasn’t “a decision we made lightly,” but explained that the math no longer works out in its favor. In 2018, EFF’s posts to Twitter saw between 50 and 100 million impressions per month, she said. By 2024, its 2,500 posts on the social platform generated around 2 million impressions per month. Last year, EFF’s 1,500 posts earned roughly 13 million impressions for the entire year. “To put it bluntly, an X post today receives less than 3% of the views a single tweet delivered seven years ago,” Thomas wrote. The organization will continue to post on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and elsewhere on the open social web, noting that its presence on a platform is not an endorsement of these services. Techcrunch event ### This Week Only: Save up to \$500 for Disrupt 2026 #### ***Offer ends April 10, 11:59 p.m. PT*** Your next round. Your next hire. Your next breakout opportunity. Find it at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, where 10,000+ founders, investors, and tech leaders gather for three days of 250+ tactical sessions, powerful introductions, and market-defining innovation. Register now to secure these savings. ### This Week Only: Save up to \$500 for Disrupt 2026 #### ***Offer ends April 10, 11:59 p.m. PT*** Your next round. Your next hire. Your next breakout opportunity. Find it at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, where 10,000+ founders, investors, and tech leaders gather for three days of 250+ tactical sessions, powerful introductions, and market-defining innovation. Register now to secure these savings. San Francisco, CA \| October 13-15, 2026 [REGISTER NOW](https://techcrunch.com/events/tc-disrupt-2026/?utm_source=tc&utm_medium=ad&utm_campaign=disrupt2026&utm_content=flashsale&promo=tc_inline_ebflashsale&display=) “We stay because the people on those platforms deserve access to information, too. We stay because some of our most-read posts are the ones criticizing the very platform we’re posting on,” Thomas said. “X is no longer where the fight is happening.” *(Ouch!)* EFF is one of many [organizations to ditch X,](https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cdxz995vd9ko) following other high-profile exits that have included various news publishers like [NPR](https://www.npr.org/2023/04/12/1169269161/npr-leaves-twitter-government-funded-media-label), [PBS](https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2023/04/13/pbs-leaves-twitter-over-label/11657850002/), [The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/media/2024/nov/13/why-the-guardian-is-no-longer-posting-on-x), [Le Monde](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/politics-news/le-monde-quits-x-twitter-elon-musk-alliance-donald-trump-1236114669/), and [others](https://rsf.org/en/guardian-and-la-vanguardia-s-departure-x-wake-call-legislators), as well as many [academics](https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/impactofsocialsciences/2024/09/05/if-academic-x-is-sinking-where-are-research-organisations-going/?utm_source=chatgpt.com), [celebs](https://mashable.com/article/list-of-celebrities-who-have-left-x-since-the-election), [local](https://www.aol.com/articles/why-many-organisations-leaving-x-061047236.html) [governments](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2024/mar/28/victorian-government-department-quits-elon-musks-x-twitter-department-families-fairness-housing?utm_source=chatgpt.com), and [more](https://openmedia.org/article/item/were-leaving-x). The news organizations may have had various reasons to leave X, but traffic could have kept them around. For some, like NPR and PBS, the departure was a reaction to Musk’s decision to falsely label them as “state-affiliated media,” a title [typically reserved](https://www.cnbc.com/2023/04/12/npr-is-first-major-us-news-outlet-to-stop-using-twitter.html) for mouthpieces of governments that lack editorial independence — such as Russia and China-based propaganda networks. For others, like Le Monde, it was a reaction to Musk’s close ties with Trump. But it’s easier to take a stand when you have little to nothing to lose. Today, any source of traffic is highly valuable, as publishers deal with shifts in online consumer behavior. [AI usage is ramping up](https://techcrunch.com/2025/06/10/googles-ai-overviews-are-killing-traffic-for-publishers/), killing traffic to publishers at the same time that news sites are seeing declining referrals from search engines and Facebook. That’s left many newsrooms to fold under the financial pressure or conduct layoffs. > Even when a newsletter \*does\* generate a lot of on-platform discussion because I put more work in, the conversion to off-site traffic is very middling. Maybe 2-3% of the readership for a Silver Bulletin article instead of ~1%. At 538, ~15% of our traffic came from Twitter\! > > — Nate Silver (@NateSilver538) [April 8, 2026](https://twitter.com/NateSilver538/status/2041902901061108059?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) In Bier’s debate with Silver, he accused newsrooms of using X wrong. Bier [stressed](https://x.com/nikitabier/status/2041888338886717617) that news outlets like The New York Times should be posting in a way to encourage conversation on X’s platform, not just using X as a news feed to publish a simple headline and a link. Silver, however, pointed out that even when he did the work to generate on-platform discussion, it didn’t provide much of a lift in terms of traffic to his website. “The conversion to off-site traffic is very middling,” Silver [wrote](https://x.com/NateSilver538/status/2041902901061108059) on X. “Maybe 2-3% of the readership for a Silver Bulletin article instead of ~1%.” By comparison, he noted that Twitter used to send FiveThirtyEight around 15% of its traffic. > These are the Twitter/X accounts with the most engagement so far in 2026. I suppose I had some intuition for how bad it was, but jeez, this is what you get when the ecosystem is broken. [pic.twitter.com/zHrS7T0iVD](https://t.co/zHrS7T0iVD) > > — Nate Silver (@NateSilver538) [April 5, 2026](https://twitter.com/NateSilver538/status/2040909183525048638?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) Even some of Silver’s detractors seemed to [agree](https://www.garbageday.email/p/openai-bought-a-livestream-no-one-watches) with his assessment of X, which he [published in a newsletter](https://www.natesilver.net/p/social-media-has-become-a-freak-show). Namely, X is now dominated by conservative influencers, and many top accounts in terms of engagement are low quality. (For instance, Silver pointed out that the account “Catturd,” a right-wing influencer known for [spreading conspiracy theories](https://www.vice.com/en/article/qanon-john-fetterman-double-conspiracy/), sees more engagement than The New York Times.) Musk, of course, dismissed this analysis, calling Silver’s data “bullshit” [in a reply.](https://x.com/elonmusk/status/2041062056108159242) > Nate is posting bullshit > > — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) [April 6, 2026](https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/2041062056108159242?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) [NiemanLab’s own analysis](https://www.niemanlab.org/2026/04/do-links-hurt-news-publishers-on-twitter-our-analysis-suggests-yes/) involving 18 large publishers’ most recent 200 posts generally supported Silver’s claims. It found that newsrooms publishing links alongside X posts were seeing poor engagement — including on future posts. That doesn’t necessarily mean X is downranking their posts — the company claims it [stopped doing that](https://x.com/nikitabier/status/2040968250604102105) — it could just mean that X is not as happening as it was before. Topics [Apps](https://techcrunch.com/category/apps/), [media](https://techcrunch.com/tag/media/), [Media & Entertainment](https://techcrunch.com/category/media-entertainment/), [News](https://techcrunch.com/tag/news/), [publishers](https://techcrunch.com/tag/publishers/), [Social](https://techcrunch.com/category/social/), [social media](https://techcrunch.com/tag/social-media/), [Twitter](https://techcrunch.com/tag/twitter/), [X](https://techcrunch.com/tag/x/)  Sarah Perez Consumer News Editor Sarah has worked as a reporter for TechCrunch since August 2011. She joined the company after having previously spent over three years at ReadWriteWeb. Prior to her work as a reporter, Sarah worked in I.T. across a number of industries, including banking, retail and software. You can contact or verify outreach from Sarah by emailing [sarahp@techcrunch.com](mailto:sarahp@techcrunch.com) or via encrypted message at sarahperez.01 on Signal. [View Bio](https://techcrunch.com/author/sarah-perez/) ### Newsletters [See More](https://techcrunch.com/newsletters/) Subscribe for the industry’s biggest tech news Keep reading  **Image Credits:**Kimberly White / Getty Images [Startups](https://techcrunch.com/category/startups/) # Final 2 days to save up to \$500 on your TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 ticket [TechCrunch Events](https://techcrunch.com/author/techcrunch-events/) 7:00 AM PDT · April 9, 2026 Ticket discounts of up to \$500 will end tomorrow, April 10, at 11:59 p.m. PT. After that, prices for [**TechCrunch Disrupt 2026**](https://techcrunch.com/events/tc-disrupt-2026/?utm_source=tc&utm_medium=post&utm_campaign=disrupt2026&utm_content=flashsale&promo=post_ebflashsale_04092026&display=) go up again. Miss this, and you’ll be paying more for the same access to one of the most anticipated tech events of the year. 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X’s decline in engagement and its ability to drive traffic is the topic du jour, with several days of bad PR for the Elon Musk-owned social network. Over the weekend, X’s head of product, Nikita Bier, and data analyst Nate Silver, previously of FiveThirtyEight, [feuded over](https://x.com/NateSilver538/status/2041901751192682643) whether or not X was still capable of sending traffic to publishers. This was followed by a [report from NiemanLab](https://www.niemanlab.org/2026/04/do-links-hurt-news-publishers-on-twitter-our-analysis-suggests-yes/) on Wednesday, which suggested that adding links to X posts is bad for engagement. On Thursday, the prominent digital rights group and nonprofit EFF (Electronic Frontier Foundation) [announced](https://x.com/EFF/status/2042278157609480566) it, too, was leaving X after seeing decreasing returns from its posts. > After almost twenty years on the platform, EFF is logging off of X. > > This isn’t a decision we made lightly, but it might be overdue. (1/5) > > — EFF (@EFF) [April 9, 2026](https://twitter.com/EFF/status/2042278157609480566?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) In [a blog post,](https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/04/eff-leaving-x) EFF’s social media manager, Kenyatta Thomas, said that leaving X after almost 20 years on the platform wasn’t “a decision we made lightly,” but explained that the math no longer works out in its favor. In 2018, EFF’s posts to Twitter saw between 50 and 100 million impressions per month, she said. By 2024, its 2,500 posts on the social platform generated around 2 million impressions per month. Last year, EFF’s 1,500 posts earned roughly 13 million impressions for the entire year. “To put it bluntly, an X post today receives less than 3% of the views a single tweet delivered seven years ago,” Thomas wrote. The organization will continue to post on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and elsewhere on the open social web, noting that its presence on a platform is not an endorsement of these services. Techcrunch event San Francisco, CA \| October 13-15, 2026 “We stay because the people on those platforms deserve access to information, too. We stay because some of our most-read posts are the ones criticizing the very platform we’re posting on,” Thomas said. “X is no longer where the fight is happening.” *(Ouch!)* EFF is one of many [organizations to ditch X,](https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cdxz995vd9ko) following other high-profile exits that have included various news publishers like [NPR](https://www.npr.org/2023/04/12/1169269161/npr-leaves-twitter-government-funded-media-label), [PBS](https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2023/04/13/pbs-leaves-twitter-over-label/11657850002/), [The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/media/2024/nov/13/why-the-guardian-is-no-longer-posting-on-x), [Le Monde](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/politics-news/le-monde-quits-x-twitter-elon-musk-alliance-donald-trump-1236114669/), and [others](https://rsf.org/en/guardian-and-la-vanguardia-s-departure-x-wake-call-legislators), as well as many [academics](https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/impactofsocialsciences/2024/09/05/if-academic-x-is-sinking-where-are-research-organisations-going/?utm_source=chatgpt.com), [celebs](https://mashable.com/article/list-of-celebrities-who-have-left-x-since-the-election), [local](https://www.aol.com/articles/why-many-organisations-leaving-x-061047236.html) [governments](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2024/mar/28/victorian-government-department-quits-elon-musks-x-twitter-department-families-fairness-housing?utm_source=chatgpt.com), and [more](https://openmedia.org/article/item/were-leaving-x). The news organizations may have had various reasons to leave X, but traffic could have kept them around. For some, like NPR and PBS, the departure was a reaction to Musk’s decision to falsely label them as “state-affiliated media,” a title [typically reserved](https://www.cnbc.com/2023/04/12/npr-is-first-major-us-news-outlet-to-stop-using-twitter.html) for mouthpieces of governments that lack editorial independence — such as Russia and China-based propaganda networks. For others, like Le Monde, it was a reaction to Musk’s close ties with Trump. But it’s easier to take a stand when you have little to nothing to lose. Today, any source of traffic is highly valuable, as publishers deal with shifts in online consumer behavior. [AI usage is ramping up](https://techcrunch.com/2025/06/10/googles-ai-overviews-are-killing-traffic-for-publishers/), killing traffic to publishers at the same time that news sites are seeing declining referrals from search engines and Facebook. That’s left many newsrooms to fold under the financial pressure or conduct layoffs. > Even when a newsletter \*does\* generate a lot of on-platform discussion because I put more work in, the conversion to off-site traffic is very middling. Maybe 2-3% of the readership for a Silver Bulletin article instead of ~1%. At 538, ~15% of our traffic came from Twitter\! > > — Nate Silver (@NateSilver538) [April 8, 2026](https://twitter.com/NateSilver538/status/2041902901061108059?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) In Bier’s debate with Silver, he accused newsrooms of using X wrong. Bier [stressed](https://x.com/nikitabier/status/2041888338886717617) that news outlets like The New York Times should be posting in a way to encourage conversation on X’s platform, not just using X as a news feed to publish a simple headline and a link. Silver, however, pointed out that even when he did the work to generate on-platform discussion, it didn’t provide much of a lift in terms of traffic to his website. “The conversion to off-site traffic is very middling,” Silver [wrote](https://x.com/NateSilver538/status/2041902901061108059) on X. “Maybe 2-3% of the readership for a Silver Bulletin article instead of ~1%.” By comparison, he noted that Twitter used to send FiveThirtyEight around 15% of its traffic. > These are the Twitter/X accounts with the most engagement so far in 2026. I suppose I had some intuition for how bad it was, but jeez, this is what you get when the ecosystem is broken. [pic.twitter.com/zHrS7T0iVD](https://t.co/zHrS7T0iVD) > > — Nate Silver (@NateSilver538) [April 5, 2026](https://twitter.com/NateSilver538/status/2040909183525048638?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) Even some of Silver’s detractors seemed to [agree](https://www.garbageday.email/p/openai-bought-a-livestream-no-one-watches) with his assessment of X, which he [published in a newsletter](https://www.natesilver.net/p/social-media-has-become-a-freak-show). Namely, X is now dominated by conservative influencers, and many top accounts in terms of engagement are low quality. (For instance, Silver pointed out that the account “Catturd,” a right-wing influencer known for [spreading conspiracy theories](https://www.vice.com/en/article/qanon-john-fetterman-double-conspiracy/), sees more engagement than The New York Times.) Musk, of course, dismissed this analysis, calling Silver’s data “bullshit” [in a reply.](https://x.com/elonmusk/status/2041062056108159242) [NiemanLab’s own analysis](https://www.niemanlab.org/2026/04/do-links-hurt-news-publishers-on-twitter-our-analysis-suggests-yes/) involving 18 large publishers’ most recent 200 posts generally supported Silver’s claims. It found that newsrooms publishing links alongside X posts were seeing poor engagement — including on future posts. That doesn’t necessarily mean X is downranking their posts — the company claims it [stopped doing that](https://x.com/nikitabier/status/2040968250604102105) — it could just mean that X is not as happening as it was before.