X, formerly known as Twitter, is being reported to be allegedly attempting to restrict user access to The New York Times, with engagement on the publisher’s posts dropping off significantly as of late July.
The problem seems to be only faced by The New York Times, with organisations like CNN, the Washington Post, and the BBC not seeing similar engagement declines, according to the Semafor report.
The publication’s reach on the platform has been stagnant, because curiously, Tweets by former President Barrack Obama with New York Times links are seeing less engagement than his other tweets.
On a normal basis, the former President’s posts reach a minimum of ten million users, however, three posts he shared on 11 September, 7 September, and 31 August that include links to New York Times articles have topped out at one million views.
It is clear why the numbers are declining, but this wouldn’t be the first time Elon Musk’s Twitter allegedly influenced user engagement.
According to Engadget, the platform was reportedly interfering with links to Threads, Mastodon, Bluesky, Substack, and The New York Times in August 2023.
