Looking to Twitter’s Elon Musk for guidance on how to use the platform?
You might want to rethink that. The tech entrepreneur has plans to remove the Block feature on X (formerly known as Twitter), except for DMs, claiming it “makes no sense” and contradicts the need for user protection and safety.
Both Apple and Google have guidelines requiring social apps to include a block feature. Musk’s stance has sparked a debate, but block features are important for security and protecting victims of abuse. The Tesla CEO suggests users should just mute others instead, but muting doesn’t prevent DMs or notifications.
In a series of tweets, Musk mentions a “stronger mute” but it seems redundant if it does the same as blocking.
This isn’t the first controversial decision Musk has made since joining Twitter. Last year, he mentioned challenging Mark Zuckerberg to a cage fight. More recently, X (for now) has been deviating from other social media apps by taking away basic functionalities like blocking.
It remains to be seen if Musk’s statement was meant to provoke or if the block feature will truly be removed. For now, X is looking more and more to be the wild west of social media.
Check out our guide on the best Twitter alternatives if you’re looking to try something new.
