After 14 years of using the Twitter platform I have just posted my
final Tweet on my remaining account there. I had intended to continue
until the end of the month, but I just get more and more disgusted
looking at the new app by the day, and am tired of having to defend my
account from intrusions from those clearly not interested in following
for the purpose that it was originally designed for. I have barely used
it in the last three weeks, I haven't missed it, and it's time to move
on. The account will be deactivated on Wednesday 16th August.
Twitter had the power to bring together the genealogy community in many unique ways, such as the use of hashtags to create meeting points such as #AncestryHour, but it is possible to become over reliant on a property, and to have your faith and years long trust invested in it abused. The original social contract between me as a user and the platform as the host has changed dramatically since its recent acquisition and its appalling rebrand. I genuinely have no idea where the current owner is going with it, nor where he is intending to take people to, but I do know that I was never consulted about the changes, and that I don't want to travel on that road with him or to reach that particular end destination. I have always been led by my conscience, and the new Twitter is just not for me. People have been meeting to discuss genealogy and family history for centuries, in many interesting ways, and they will always find a way to do so, and on their own terms. There are always alternative forums and platforms.
If you have
followed me on Twitter, I hope my contributions there helped, and thanks
to all who did so. For anyone who may be disappointed, don't fret, you
can continue to find me on Threads, Mastodon, and Facebook (details
below), as well as my websites and LinkedIn! For those who never used Twitter, nothing changes!
Here's to the next chapter...
Chris
Order Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors in the UK at https://bit.ly/BelfastAncestors. Also available - Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records, Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. For purchase in tthe USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, on Threads at @scottishgenesblog and via Mastodon at https://mastodon.scot/@ScottishGENES.
As somebody who closed their account a couple of months ago, I can’t say I blame you, Chris. Almost immediately after the acquisition, Twitter (I refuse to use the new name) headed rapidly downhill. Moderation almost stopped, my workload from having to deal with unwanted tweets went up and I rapidly lost interest.
ReplyDeleteEach of used Twitter for different reasons, but it no liner met my needs. I do have a Mastodon account that connects to a few closed servers, but I think the days of free (as in free from abuse) social media has gone.