Wikipedia:Wikipedia Signpost/2024-08-14/In focus
Twitter marks the spot
The acquisition of Twitter by Elon Musk from 14 April to 28 October 2022, and its subsequent rebranding as X on 24 July 2023, have caused extensive debates on Wikipedia. Central to these discussions is whether this constitutes the creation of an entirely new entity, and if so, how this should be reflected in articles. The main article about the social network is currently under the title 'Twitter', but the title of Twitter under Elon Musk raised concerns about Wikipedia's policy on biographies of living persons, as it was argued that it could appear to hold Musk solely accountable for all the controversies (even when he was no longer the CEO).
The X-CEO
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Ex-CEO Elon Musk -
X CEO Linda Yaccarino
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When Musk announced Linda Yaccarino as his successor as CEO, editors discussed whether to continue covering his influence on the platform in Twitter under Elon Musk, or to restrict it to his tenure as CEO. Concerns were raised by Jtbobwaysf about avoiding content duplication with the main Twitter article and deciding what updates should be included. Horse Eye's Back argued that the purpose of the article was to cover significant developments related to Musk's leadership, as indicated by 'under' in the title.
To gather wider community input, a request for comment (RfC) discussed whether the article on Twitter during Elon Musk's tenure should adhere to the stricter standards of biographies of living persons (BLP), given its focus on Musk. BLP guidelines, which require careful sourcing for content about living individuals, were under debate whether they applied to the entire article, or just the parts mentioning Musk. There was also concern about the potential for content forks, and how to handle overlapping information with the main Twitter article, particularly regarding sensitive allegations and the reliability of sources. The discussion was procedurally closed by Dsprc, noting that BLP policies should apply to the article due to its focus on Musk.
Snowstorm
Early requests to change the title of the main Twitter article were consistently rejected, due to the rebranding being incomplete, and the name remaining widely recognized. These early discussions were quickly closed, via the snowball clause, in order to not exhaust community time. Strong consensus was to retain the article's title until the rebranding was fully realized and adopted. Despite Musk's rebranding efforts, these earlier discussions on this matter closed with a consensus that 'Twitter' was still the more recognizable and used name.
The repeated nature of these proposals — and their consistent failure — led some editors to discuss a move moratorium on future renaming requests pending more definitive evidence of a change in the situation. Some contributors favoured a shorter one of around three months, with some saying six months would be excessive. The consensus leant towards allowing an exception if the official domain actually changed to x.com. The proposed moratorium was seen as a way to balance avoiding constant debate with allowing flexibility to respond to significant changes.
In May 2024, the social network changed its domain to x.com and a move was requested by ElijahPepe to move Twitter to X (social network). The proposal's opponents maintained that 'Twitter' was more recognizable, that it was used more prominently in reliable sources, and that an immediate change could confuse readers and obscure the article. Some suggested a compromise, like splitting the article into sections, or creating separate entries for Twitter and X. The supporters of this move argued that the substantial changes under Musk, including new features and a shift in company culture, warranted a distinct article for X, to avoid confusion and ensure a clear historical separation (similar to other rebranded companies). Some opposition argued that X is essentially the same platform as Twitter, albeit under new management, and that creating separate articles could cause confusion and redundancy. Some argued that the core nature of the social network remains unchanged, making a single, continuous article more suitable. A compromise was suggested by keeping the Twitter article focused on its history up to 2022 while creating a new article for X, aiming to balance historical accuracy with practical readability and editorial consistency. The request was closed as unsuccessful by Sceptre; and thirty-eight minutes later, ElijahPepe requested to move Twitter under Elon Musk to X (social network) and was met with initial support and the same points from the previous discussion were raised.
The article was moved to 'X (social network)' and this decision was defended by the closer, citing personal judgement and perceived majority support. A subsequent move review was opened as it was thought that the move from Twitter under Elon Musk to X (social network) was made prematurely, with 29 supporting and 20 opposing the change not indicating a consensus. This approach was seen to have overlooked the need for a clear, policy-based consensus and relied on a narrow interpretation. They contended that the change, which also suggested a shift in content scope, might cause confusion and was made without fully addressing concerns about whether 'Twitter' and 'X' should be distinct entities. Theleekycauldron later closed the move review and the page was defaulted to its original name with the move discussion being relisted.
As the discussion was re-opened, Masem argued that the changes — including new features, policies, and management changes — justify the creation of distinct articles. This would allow for a clearer distinction between the historical Twitter and the current X. Some opponents viewed Twitter and X as the same platform under different names, warning that such a division might mislead readers into perceiving them as separate entities when X is merely a rebranding of Twitter. Proposed solutions include either maintaining a single article with a section dedicated to the rebranding or creating a new article for X, and Jorahm supported preserving Twitter as a historical article.
In August 2024, a request to move List of most-followed Twitter accounts to 'List of most-followed X accounts' was proposed by MarkJames1989, citing that most reliable sources now refer to the platform as X. This request was met with immediate opposition, with Robertsky arguing that the parent topic remains 'Twitter', and the move will likely be challenged; and SmittenGalaxy noting that the many attempts to rename Twitter-related articles have been unsuccessful.
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A survey was held in November 2023 to decide on whether to split content related to Twitter's history before and after Musk's acquisition, with proposals to reorganize the content to reflect the platform's transformation. Options included merging and moving sections, splitting the history into separate articles, or retaining a unified history. Creating new articles which split the history of Twitter was suggested, and some participants argue that splitting the history section prematurely could disrupt the consensus process and weaken the comprehensiveness of the main Twitter article, which relies on history for context. Others supported the split, asserting that Twitter's history is substantial enough to merit a standalone article. Concerns about content duplication across related pages have been raised, with CommunityNotesContributor suggesting plans on how information should be distributed to avoid redundancy.
A brief discussion took place to determine where the redirect X (social network) should be targeted, and another discussion considered whether the rebranding should influence the introduction of the article as "Twitter, officially known as X since July 2023" or "X commonly referred to by its former name, Twitter". Another RfC debated the most accurate disambiguator to describe Twitter's rebranding as X, with options like 'Rebranded to X', 'Renamed to X', and others being considered. The terms 'rebranded' and 'renamed' had support, with proponents of 'rebranded' arguing it best reflects the platform's continuity under a new name, avoiding implications that Twitter has ceased to exist.
Post-publication developments
The May 2024 request to move Twitter under Elon Musk to 'X (social network)' was closed by Wbm1058, who determined there was no consensus to separate coverage of Twitter and X. In their closing statement, they used the analogy of base ball, noting that although it has evolved over time, it still redirects to its modern version. They later recommended that the next request should be to move Twitter to X (social network), as the AP Stylebook has been updated to prefer 'X' with references to 'Twitter' when necessary; and reliable sources, including The New York Times, are following this style. Two days later, ElijahPepe requested this move.
Discuss this story
Still, not everyone knows Twitter's new brand. This is why the article wasn't renamed. Ahri Boy (talk) 00:39, 15 August 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Hats off to "Ex-CEO", hehe. This sure did spark the most epic of Wikipedia arguments. I have personally found myself annoyed at how easily news publications roll over whenever a silly rebranding like this happens, so either way I appreciate Wikipedia taking its time on this. This is Wikipedia doing its job, spending thousands of words to slowly get to the optimal situation. ~Maplestrip/Mable (chat) 11:26, 15 August 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Isn't Musk now Ex-X-CEO, dos equis? -R. S. Shaw (talk) 06:14, 19 August 2024 (UTC)[reply]