The Conversation - Twitter users in search of a new roost

Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter has occasioned turmoil, including a spike in hate speech on the social media platform, mass layoffs and numerous high-profile advertisers’ pulling their business from the company. Unsurprisingly, this has led many Twitter users to vote with their feet, virtually speaking, and leave the platform. Nearly 900,000 exited in a recent five-day period, according to one count.

Many users who left and others who are thinking of leaving are asking the same question: Where should we go? Some are turning to an alternative platform called Mastodon, which saw an influx of new users in the immediate aftermath of Musk’s Twitter takeover. Others are turning to the publishing platform Substack, which announced plans to add a chat function.

University of Colorado Boulder information scientist Casey Fiesler explains that a mass exodus will not necessarily result in Twitter users’ coming together somewhere else. Fiesler’s research about social media shows that mass migrations face many challenges. However, she says there is hope for clusters of ex-Twitter users to find each other.

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