X-odus: why CAE is leaving X, formerly Twitter
With 2025 approaching, Culture Action Europe is entering the new year a little lighter and more focused. Today, we announce the deletion of our X (formerly Twitter) account, effective 1 January 2025. This decision reflects our commitment to developing both online and offline spaces for sustainable, inclusive, and democratic exchange.
Recent changes on X have led to an escalation of content that contradicts our principles of inclusivity, diversity, and constructive discourse. Continuing our presence on a platform that tolerates hate speech and misinformation would undermine our mission to advocate for transformative cultural policies and plural, open societies.
Additionally, by reallocating resources and time previously dedicated to X, we aim to strengthen our presence on platforms that can better foster constructive dialogue and increase the visibility of the CAE network. This shift will enable us to strengthen our capacity to better serve our members.
A Broader Movement in the Cultural Sector
Our decision joins a growing trend among cultural organisations and professionals who are reevaluating their relationship with X. For instance, our members, the Network of European Museum Organisations, (NEMO), decided to leave in November of this year, stating that “recent changes to the platform’s leadership, policies, and the increased spread of hateful content have made it clear that X no longer aligns with our mission or values.”
The discourse surrounding the centring of tech giants in our work as cultural agents has been ongoing and remains a heated subject of action for many in the CAE network. Members European Network of Cultural Centres (ENCC)’s report “On Digital Ethics” unpacks the importance of the cultural sector divesting from big tech in order to preserve autonomy, protect data and avoid the increasingly far-right echo chambers that exist on certain platforms, such as X, which work to spread m/disinformation, xenophobia, racism and hate speech.
Within the past month, X has seen a mass exodus of artists leave the platform due to an amendment to the user terms of service that does not allow users to opt out of having their posted content used for AI/generative training. Prior to the change, users still had the ability to opt out, but as of now by continuing to use the platform, users agree that X can use their data to train its AI models. This is one of the key topics CAE’s Digital and AI action group has included in its considerations regarding the implementation of the European Union’s Artificial Intelligence Act.
Looking Forward
As we bid good riddance to almost 15 years on X, we encourage our community, as always, to connect with us through our other communication channels, where we will continue to share news, updates, resources and opportunities.