Stephen King has officially confirmed that he is no longer on X because of the growing toxicity of the platform. The famous author behind "Pet Sematary" and "Salem's Lot" was among the vocal critics of the direction that the social media app is taking under Elon Musk.
So many personalities and organizations are now moving away from the platform regarding hazardous content and changing policies. Even popular publications are slowly avoiding X whenever they publish content online.
The Toxicity Issue: Why Stephen King Left X
King announced he was departing X after calling the network "too toxic." As The Guardian learns, his resignation came as growing frustration over the problems plaguing the platform were mounting and spurring outrage concerning misinformation, harassment, and hate speech.
The 77-year-old author has come up against Musk on several occasions since the tech entrepreneur acquired the network for $44 billion in 2022.
"I'm leaving Twitter. Tried to stay, but the atmosphere has just become too toxic." Referring to the rival platform launched by Mark Zuckerberg's Meta, he added: "Follow me on Threads, if you like," King posted.
However, King clarified via Reuters that he wasn't really banned from X, as the previous rumors said. It's his own choice to leave. Regardless, he urged his fans to follow him on Threads if they like.
Read Also: Bluesky Booms After Trump's Win; 700,000 Users Flee Elon's X for 'Real Human' Connection
Stephen King is Not the Only Famous Personality Leaving From X
King is the latest in the long list of powerful users to leave X since the platform was overhauled when Musk stepped in. Other names include The Guardian, German football club St Pauli, actor Jamie Lee Curtis, and TV journalist Don Lemon, who all said publicly that they had quit X.
From the looks of it, they left the platform because they were already tired of seeing disturbing content—and this is mainly the reason for their departure.
For instance, The Guardian labeled the benefits of being on X to be no longer sufficient given the "too often disturbing content."
St Pauli also announced that it would cut ties with the platform as it deemed X a "hate machine." More famous voices like Curtis and Lemon expressed their frustration at New X's policies and the straits the platform had gotten itself in through its dissemination of fake news.
Stephen King is a Musk Critic
King isn't new to frustrations with Musk. Last year, after Musk took over Twitter, King threatened to quit over a plan to require users to pay $20 to retain their blue verification checkmark.
At the time, King questioned why there was a need to pay $20 per month just to keep the blue check. Apparently, Elon did not want his name on the platform anymore that's why he's good as a goner someday like Enron.
King has also decried Musk's standing above Donald Trump, especially during the campaign period, where he boasted that his endorsement of the politician was awesome—in a way that he used the most popular social media to campaign for Trump's presidential bid.
King responded and answered all the accusations leveled by Musk among which included making a joke on Democratic candidate Kamala Harris, describing their remarks as "ridiculous," and "as usual."
The X Exodus Continues
The exodus from X has speeded up in the last few months, however. Many users have expressed concern over how the platform handles toxic content.
The Center for Countering Digital Hate also announced its departure, suggesting that it is now so fed up with the site that it is leaving due to the site's new terms and conditions, which require any legal disputes to be decided in Texas – potentially an advantage to Musk.
Meanwhile, the rival Bluesky of X has been gaining momentum, with more than 1 million new users since the U.S. election. The platform has almost touched 15 million global users by today from the 9 million users it had in September.
Is X on the Verge of Decline?
The question remains: Does the platform have a chance to recover from this growing wave of dissatisfaction? Increasing censorship, wide-scale disinformation, and the total control Musk had over the platform are reasons why many users started searching for other options.
A giant among its competitors, Bluesky, including other social media sites, is poised to gain from the decline of X, potentially offering refuge to its users from the chaos.
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