“In the past year, alternatives to Twitter have bubbled up,” says Brit Stakston, media strategist with a focus on, among other things, social media.
Platform X has been struggling with a number of issues since billionaire Elon Musk took over just over a year ago.
— It’s broken and buggy, says Brit Stakston.
Voices have been raised about a lack of moderation, that personal attacks are allowed and that disinformation is allowed to fly freely. For example, the EU Commission has launched an investigation into the amount of false and misleading information being spread on X about the war between Israel and Hamas.
“A Clone”
Interest has also decreased dramatically since Musk’s takeover, according to statistics from the media company Axios compiled.
Among the bubbling alternatives and challengers is Bluesky, which, among others, Twitter creator Jack Dorsey is behind and runs.
— It really is a clone, says Brit Stakston.
Jonas Sjöstedt is one of those who have given up tweeting in favor of Bluesky, which The Express noticed.
— The atmosphere at Bluesky is good, it is friendly and open. It’s a bit reminiscent of Twitter in the beginning. It is also a big contrast to today’s Twitter, where anonymous troll accounts, hate and racism dominate more and more, says the former Left Party leader to the newspaper.
Former Member of Parliament Lorentz Tovatt (MP) says that there is a clear red-green focus on Bluesky and that he too has started winding down his activity on X.
— There are so many trolls and idiots. Then I don’t want anything to do with Elon Musk. He has lost his temper, he tells Expressen.
The S leader at Bluesky
The Social Democrats’ party leader, former Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson, has not abandoned Twitter but has started an account on Bluesky.
There are campaigns among users on X to get more people to move to Bluesky, which requires an invitation from someone who already has an account.
Brit Stakston has seen for herself that interest in Bluesky has increased in Sweden. More and more Swedes have started to follow her on the platform in recent weeks, but she opposes the idea that it would be a red-green platform.
— I experience it very anecdotally, after all, there are very few who have started to find the platform.
She believes that the media landscape will generally become more fragmented and niche, where X will also live on and have a function. It is where journalists trawl for news and where politicians can gain influence for their actions, she says.
— It is still a very effective channel for making political moves and putting a torch to something that is picked up by the media.