Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter) has announced that it will now allow users you have blocked to view your posts, though they still will not be able to interact with those posts. The decision is controversial amongst X users as many rely on the block feature to prevent crazy people from reading their posts.
The Verge reports that X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, is making a significant change to its blocking feature. According to a recent announcement by X owner Elon Musk, users will now be able to view public posts from accounts that blocked them, although they will still be unable to engage with those posts through likes, comments, or retweets.
Currently, when a user has been blocked by another user on X, they are greeted with a “You’re blocked” message when attempting to view the blocked user’s profile. This prevents them from seeing any of the blocked user’s posts, replies, media, followers, or following list. However, with the upcoming change, blocked users will be able to view the public posts of those who have blocked them. This decision puzzles many users that specifically block others to prevent them from reading and screenshotting their posts.
A source at X told The Verge that the decision to make this change stems from the fact that people can already view posts from users who have blocked them by using another account or browsing the platform while logged out. However, several staff members at the Verge have noticed that X actually prevents users from viewing a blocked person’s profile even when logged out.
Elon Musk has been vocal about his dislike of the block button, stating last year that the feature “makes no sense” and that “it needs to be deprecated in favor of a stronger form of mute.” He even threatened to remove the ability for users to block others on the platform entirely, except for direct messages.
While the block button will still prevent users from directly interacting with a blocked account’s posts, the fact that they will be able to view these posts has raised concerns about the potential for harassment. Critics argue that this change could make it easier for bad actors to continue targeting their victims, even after being blocked.
Read more at the Verge here.
Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship.
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