Many organisations working in the social justice sector are considering leaving X due to the role the social media platform plays in spreading misinformation, according to a new survey by a major funder.
The Barrow Cadbury Trust recently surveyed 415 of its funded partners and other stakeholders, many of which are charities, about their use of social media.
Some 84% of the 128 respondents to one question said they were currently reviewing the platforms on which they post or were thinking of reviewing them.
A spokesperson for the Barrow Cadbury Trust told Civil Society that the foundation had been thinking about its profile on X “for some time” and was now building up its presence and posting on rival platform Bluesky.
This summer, ACEVO and other charities including the Race Equality Foundation and Colchester and Ipswich Hospitals Charity announced that they would close their X accounts in the wake of the riots across the UK.
‘Majority of social media outlets at odds with intrinsic values’
Of the 415 respondents who stated which platforms they are currently using, 27% said LinkedIn, followed by X (26%), Instagram (18%) and Facebook (17%).
Conversely, the least used platforms included WhatsApp and YouTube (8%), and Threads (4%).
Of those who are currently reviewing the platforms they use or thinking of doing so, some said they were considering joining TikTok, Threads and Bluesky.
Several shared concerns about X (rebranded from Twitter by Elon Musk) such as its “political shift”, difficulties accessing analytics and the platform taking a “more negative turn”.
One respondent said: “We don’t want to use X anymore. We find the majority of mainstream social media outlets are at odds with intrinsic values and therefore our work.”
Another said: “We’re concerned by the role X plays in the spread of disinformation, hate and violence, particularly in relation to the racist rioting seen in [July and] August this year.
“We feel it may no longer align with our values. Although we have our largest following here, so we’d need to think about how we encourage them to follow us elsewhere.
“Our stats on X have also been on a steady decline since there were changes to the algorithm.
“Our fastest growing platform is now LinkedIn and we think with more energy put into it, we could maximise impact here, rather than spending time on X where we’re now seeing little engagement.”
‘We want to make sure we don’t isolate ourselves’
Writing in the introduction to the survey, the Barrow Cadbury Trust said that “X has been successful as a campaigning and engagement tool” but it believes there are other platforms that could be “useful for engaging with new and existing audiences”.
A spokesperson told Civil Society: “For some time, Barrow Cadbury Trust has been thinking about its presence and profile on X.
“The misinformation and toxic exchanges during [July and August’s] riots were a catalyst for us to find out what others in the social justice sector were thinking so we could make a judgement on whether to leave and if so which platform(s) to go to.
“The survey we sent out was very much the start of a process for us. We have three X accounts for different areas of our work with slightly different functions.
“It’s clear from the survey that lots of us are looking at moving but want to make sure we don’t isolate ourselves in the process.
“For the time being, Barrow Cadbury Trust will continue on X and also build up its presence and posting on Bluesky.
“We very much hope this survey will prompt further discussion and debate in the sector.”
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