“Please wait a few moments...”
It’s truly rare that I have the urge to write, let alone publish something the same day as learning about a new current event, but this has me very upset. Twitter has now implemented a new inconvenience to its platform that is called “Rate Limit”. What is that you may be asking yourself? Essentially Elon has decided to limit how many tweets a user may view daily. Currently verified accounts are limited to viewing 6,000 tweets, unverified accounts are limited to 600, and new unverified accounts are limited to 300 tweets daily. This also includes looking at your own profile. I know…. What the fuck.
This isn’t about someone taking my precious social media away, my golden distraction, the AI apple of my eye. No, this a larger conversation about censorship. It’s totally backwards that it has become more difficult to obtain and preserve information in the year of 2023. We’ve seen digital archives vanish, completely wiped away after boomers swore up and down that the “internet is forever”. Elon Musk alleges this is a protective measure but in my eyes it will only cause more harm.
While reading a CNN article on the matter, I spotted this.
There are conflicting reports on which version of Twitter still functions like before, but it seems there’s an overwhelming majority who have full visibility via desktop. A few hours after his initial announcement, Musk also alleged that he’ll eventually increase the limit to 8,000 tweets for verified, 800 for unverified, and 400 for new unverified accounts.
Those two facts don’t change how I feel about this situation at all. In fact I’m more upset that people on desktop have full visibility of the site because it feels like a control tactic & is inaccessible! Not everyone has a laptop or desktop. It’s possible that it’s just a bug but I highly doubt it….
I know there will be some people who believe this is an overreaction, but truly this is bigger than limiting memes & fight videos. Other websites will start to get creative with their paywalls. They will soon catch on to what the consumer does & doesn’t like about this new change, repackage it, and then we are stuck in the same space. Scurrying from one app to the next. It probably won’t stop at social media sites either. I already have an issue with “reliable” news websites being hidden under paywalls. Writers need to be paid - YES. But there has to be another way.
Tumblr has a limit of 250 post a day to keep control of the sites bandwidth. Which I understand since they claim it’s a money-saving effort. But they don’t hide how many posts you can view once you’ve hit that post limit. This is the one scenario where I can handle a limit because the site still runs accordingly. So I don’t mean to fear monger about Twitter, but this all rubs me the wrong way, I’m getting the ick if you will. We don’t know how this may change media as a whole. You have to remember Twitter is HUGE and multiple industries use it. Companies rely heavily on digital marketing, so how will they cope when there are no consumers to engage? What ever shall they do?
What happens when both the “little guy” & the “big man” have a fucking Rate Limit. I think people will quietly leave. Full account deletions may not happen but you’ll start to see more people drop their IG handles and only post every now & again on Twitter. The value has been decreasing for awhile now, users are constantly aggravated by new unnecessary changes. The only “valid” reason that I hear for why people stay is because there isn’t any other social media that delivers the same quickness as this text-based platform. Instagram has tried to remedy this by introducing “Notes” which can be posted for up to 24 hours. Downside is you can’t look at old notes, there’s a limit of 60 characters, and the only function you have is to reply to them - not like. Doesn’t have the same flare as a quick tweet.
In conclusion, I know we will be okay because I know people are savvy. But at the same time I do not have any answers right now other than to exchange contacts, diversify content, and branch out to other platforms. Don’t stop creating & don’t stop learning - because that’s exactly what the want you to do.
Source:
CNN - #TwitterDown: Elon Musk announces temporary read limits on Twitter
