In its heyday, Twitter was heralded as the "digital town square," the "dialtone of the internet," the most direct and efficient way to reach a global audience. Founded in 2006, government agencies embraced Twitter as a channel to reach their constituents, provide news, updates, and timely emergency information. You will find Twitter links and logos on nearly every government web page, alongside other popular platforms like Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, and more.

Twitter is now X. And Twitter is no longer a viable place for credible information. In fact, Twitter has very quickly become a primary vector for malicious misinformation, hate speech, and harassment. There is no reliable verification of official accounts. There is no moderation of false or misleading information (save volunteer users). In fact, Twitter now incentivizes provocative, viral content—which almost without exception are hoaxes. Indeed, state actors are seizing upon Twitter's current state of disarray to ramp up widescale misinformation and counterintelligence campaigns.

Using Twitter is worse than using nothing. Using Twitter is endorsing its current chaotic and dangerous state. Governments must denounce Twitter, and focus on other channels and platforms to reach the public.

All government agencies, offices, and officials should stop using Twitter.  However, it's important to not delete existing accounts, as their usernames can then be claimed by bad actors and used for malicious purposes. Each account should publish a final post directing followers to official sources of information and declare the Twitter account closed.

All government agencies and offices should also remove Twitter icons, links, and embeds from government websites. Not only does the presence of these links endorse Twitter/X, but contribute to Twitter's massive aggregation of web traffic data, including the public.

Here are some articles about the issue. I strongly believe this to be an important stance for governments to take.

• The Moral Case for No Longer Engaging With Elon Musk’s X
• The Week Twitter Went Evil
• How Elon Musk killed Twitter
• How a Social Network Fails
• X Is a Fog-of-War Machine
• The Israel-Hamas War Is Drowning X in Disinformation

It bears noting that Twitter has remarkably low engagement overall, and delivers almost negligible traffic already.

• Six Months Ago NPR Left Twitter. The Effects Have Been Negligible

Governments must prioritize transparency, accessibility, and an informed public. These ends are no longer supported by Twitter.