Universities break with platform X - a clear sign of democracy!

More than 60 German -language universities and research institutions have decided to stop their activities on the platform X. This decision was announced, among other things, by the FAU Erlangen-Nuremberg, which has joined the initiative and most recently published a post on X.

The original purpose of the platform X to carry the university discourse into society is increasingly criticized. The universities in particular criticize the algorithmic reinforcement of right -wing populist content and the limitation of the organic reach on the platform. These developments illustrate the use of the institutions for fact -based communication and against anti -democratic forces.

demand for an open discussion culture

The decision only affects the X accounts of the institutions involved; For the time being, no further social media channels are affected. Institutions that have already withdrawn from platform X support the common appeal for an open and constructive discussion culture. The FAU announces to expand its activities on other platforms such as Bluesky, Instagram and LinkedIn, and will also provide information on threads, mastodon and tiktok about research, teaching and university life.

Another reason for this decision could have been the live switch of the US billionaire Elon Musk with the AfD boss Alice Weidel. Several actors, including the city of Bochum, critically commented on the platform and emphasized that a platform that discredited democracy was not their platform.

In addition, universities in Bamberg, Bayreuth and Würzburg have stopped their activities on X. A press release from the Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf made it clear that this decision is based on the current direction of the platform, which is not compatible with the basic values of cosmopolitanism, transparency and democratic discourse, such as Zeit.de reported.

So far, 63 facilities of the campaign have joined and other institutions are expected. The spokeswoman for the University of Potsdam, Silke Engel, explained that the work and functionality of the platform had changed significantly, which caused concerns about the spread of disinformation and the negative effects of a lack of moderation under the guise of freedom of expression.

The current developments on the platform X and its algorithms are still observed, such as reported.