X's Controversial Blocking Update Fuels Bluesky's Growth

The social media landscape continues to shift as X (formerly Twitter) implements a controversial update to its blocking feature. This change, which allows blocked accounts to view public posts while limiting their interaction, has sparked significant debate and fueled a mass migration of users to alternative platforms, particularly Bluesky.

X's New Blocking Policy

X's engineering team announced the updated blocking feature, which now allows blocked accounts to see public posts but restricts their ability to engage with them. This change marks a departure from the previous policy where blocked accounts couldn't view any content from the blocking account.

Impact on Bluesky

The new blocking policy has been met with significant backlash from X users, leading to a surge in migrations to Bluesky, a decentralized social media platform. Within 12 hours of the announcement, Bluesky witnessed a surge of over 100,000 new users, reaching 500,000 within 24 hours. This growth comes after a previous user influx in September 2024 when X was blocked in Brazil. Bluesky's user base now surpasses 10 million, up from 6 million in July 2024.

What is the recent update to X's blocking feature?

X now allows blocked accounts to view public posts but restricts their ability to interact with them, including liking, replying, and reposting. Previously, blocked accounts couldn't see any content from the account that blocked them.

What is the impact of X's new blocking policy on Bluesky?

Since X's update, there has been a significant influx of users to Bluesky, with over 100,000 new users in the first 12 hours and a total of 500,000 within 24 hours. This surge in users has helped Bluesky reach over 10 million users, up from 6 million in July 2024.

How does X's update affect the visibility of protected posts?

The new blocking policy only affects public posts. Users can protect their posts, making them only visible to their followers, and this setting remains unaffected by the update.

What are the steps to protect posts on X?

To protect your posts on X, you need to open the app, go to Settings, select Privacy and Security, click on Audience, and then enable the "Protect your Tweets" option.

The Rise of Decentralized Social Media

The recent events highlight the growing popularity of decentralized social media platforms like Bluesky. These platforms offer users greater control over their data and interactions, offering an alternative to the centralized model of platforms like X. While X continues to evolve its features, the migration of users to decentralized alternatives suggests a potential shift in the social media landscape, emphasizing user privacy and autonomy.