Media Strategist: X Becoming Ineffective For Journalists

Journalists are increasingly finding X (formerly Twitter) to be an ineffective platform for driving traffic and engagement, with new research suggesting that tweets containing links are being algorithmically throttled. Citing analysis from Nieman Lab, media strategist Simon Owens argues that journalists are deluding themselves about X's current value, as data indicates a significant suppression of reach for content that aims to direct users off the platform.

The core issue, according to Owens, is that X's algorithm appears to actively deprioritize posts containing external links. This throttling dramatically reduces the visibility and engagement of news articles and other journalistic content. As an example, Owens points out that The New York Times, despite having 53 times the followers of a link-free breaking news account, receives only a fraction of the engagement when posting links.

Owens's personal policy reflects this diminished utility: he cross-posts his content to X but avoids scrolling or interacting, effectively using it as a one-way broadcast channel. He also explicitly states his ethical reluctance to contribute to the platform's revenue, citing his view of the owner as a "genocidal maniac."

This situation leads Owens to conclude that the argument for X's continued relevance for traffic generation "doesn't hold up" if links are systematically suppressed. The implication is that journalists who continue to use X primarily to "drive traffic" are performing the "digital equivalent of shouting into a soundproofed room," with recent data now confirming this ineffectiveness.