The social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, announced in June that verified accounts would be getting paid in return for the company running ads in their comments sections. At the time, many free market capitalists, myself included, thought it was a great idea.
These people bring revenue to X. Compensating them seems fair.
I then realized that this move by Elon Musk's social media giant might have catastrophic results. The problem: X's incentive structure translates as "the edgier, the better." X has always been more Wild West saloon than polite cocktail party, but the discourse on X could be headed toward lows never seen before.
Take the Krassenstein brothers posting annoying questions to drive up engagement. Or Tim Pool chirping about how America is in a second Civil War. X is choosing to boost visibility for accounts generating massive numbers of comments. But this has created problems beyond the predictable levels of grift.
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Jackson Hinkle, a YouTuber who frequently posts pro-Russia and anti-Israel propaganda, had the sixth-largest reach on X as of Oct. 20. Most of his engagement is driven by parroting Hamas propaganda and promoting debunked claims about the Israel-Hamas war. Hinkle’s account performed 1,637 times better than expected for an account with the same number of followers. Hinkle now claims that he is being "ghost-banned" by X. Regardless, if X's model for boosting content does not change, X users will retain incentives for posting the most controversial and inflammatory content possible.
It's clear why Musk allowed this development. He had to do something to boost revenue on his platform. Today, X is valued at only $19 billion. That's only a year after Musk paid $44 billion for the company. As of January, X’s revenue had dropped 40% year over year. The number of daily mobile users has declined 15%, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Don't get me wrong. I applaud Musk for taking a massive financial risk in standing up for free speech. Still, X must change its policies around account promotion. Trash-for-cash is ruining the social media giant.
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Brady Leonard (@bradyleonard) is a musician, political strategist, and host of The No Gimmicks Podcast.