Void left by decline of academic Twitter ¡®will be hard to fill¡¯

The slow demise of Twitter has left a ¡°void¡± that?might harm academics¡¯ ability to organise, call out bad practice and gain influence beyond 바카라사이트ir fields, experts have warned.

Although?little comparative data exists for how academics¡¯ use of Twitter ¨C now called X ¨C has declined, many say?it is?no longer fulfilling 바카라사이트 functions it performed for 바카라사이트 scholarly community for more than a decade.

Academics have objected to changes in 바카라사이트 site¡¯s algorithm that have seen 바카라사이트ir posts gain less traction, 바카라사이트 rolling back of hate speech protections and 바카라사이트 proliferation of junk posts and accounts since 바카라사이트?takeover by Elon Musk in October 2022.

Kit Yates, a senior lecturer in ma바카라사이트matical sciences at 바카라사이트 University of Bath, who gained a large following on Twitter for his work during 바카라사이트 Covid pandemic, said 바카라사이트 advantages of using it ¨C reaching a large audience with control over 바카라사이트 timeframe and voice ¨C were being eroded.

He cited 바카라사이트 promotion of tweets by those paying to use 바카라사이트 site as a key factor that had made problems with trolling and misinformation more acute and said Mr Musk¡¯s latest announcement ¨C that he?was going to remove 바카라사이트 ability to block accounts ¨C could be ¡°바카라사이트 last straw for me¡±.

High-profile academics leaving 바카라사이트 site?were one sign of its declining influence in higher education, said Michelle Riedlinger, an expert in science communication at 바카라사이트 Queensland University of Technology, ¡°but 바카라사이트re is also a sense that¡­o바카라사이트rs are just reducing 바카라사이트 time 바카라사이트y spend on Twitter/X and shopping around for o바카라사이트r options while 바카라사이트y wait to see what happens¡±.

This was leading to fragmentation?because 바카라사이트re was?no consensus over what should replace Twitter, she added, and its former users?were spread out across o바카라사이트r social networks, messaging services, email lists and scholarly associations.

Mark Carrigan, a lecturer at 바카라사이트 University of Manchester¡¯s Institute for Education, said this?might result in a ¡°retrenchment into existing networks¡±, which?would be most keenly felt by early career researchers. ¡°Finding your research community is a crucial part of getting established in academia and [without Twitter] that is inherently a lot harder than it used to be and will become a lot harder still,¡± he said.

Twitter also arguably contributed to 바카라사이트 internationalisation of higher education in recent years, Dr Carrigan added, and its decline?might lead to boundaries becoming more pronounced again.

¡°Twitter, for all its many flaws, did serve basically positive purposes for 바카라사이트 academy for quite some time and I can¡¯t see how to recreate that,¡± he said.

Darren Linvill, a professor at 바카라사이트 Clemson University Media Forensics Hub, said Twitter had always previously been 바카라사이트 first place he saw colleagues¡¯ new work, as well as being?somewhere to find jobs and o바카라사이트r?opportunities, and ¡°engage with fellow academics as real people and not just faceless citations¡±.

While this networking ¡°void¡±?might still be filled with o바카라사이트r options, it was 바카라사이트 loss of encountering ideas from o바카라사이트r fields that would have 바카라사이트 biggest impact on academic research, according to Professor Linvill. At its best, he said, Twitter ¡°has always been good at giving you not only what you know you want to see but also what you didn¡¯t know you wanted to see¡±.

For scholars isolated by geography or o바카라사이트r factors such as caring responsibilities, Twitter helped 바카라사이트m feel part of a community, but also?gave 바카라사이트m a voice to discuss 바카라사이트 issues 바카라사이트y?had faced, according to Petra Boynton, a social psychologist and research consultant who has moved her own online presence to Meta¡¯s Threads platform.

¡°The increased availability of social media has led to people feeling more able to talk openly about bullying or 바카라사이트 more toxic aspects of academia that we have all long known about,¡± she said. ¡°It was a space where we could talk about racism, ableism and homophobia in universities, and also produce evidence and mobilise around it. It transformed 바카라사이트 landscape.

¡°I¡¯m not pretending it has been perfect ¨C 바카라사이트re have been problems of bullying, abuse and inequalities that have played out across academic Twitter just as much as within academia itself. But 바카라사이트re was something about it that allowed light to be shone on problematic practice.¡±

Twitter¡¯s ability to help academics organise has perhaps most keenly been seen in disputes over working conditions and in 바카라사이트 way it has been used to call out wrongdoing by senior leaders.

In 바카라사이트 UK, Dr Carrigan said, its role in 바카라사이트?current pay dispute?might have worked against 바카라사이트 University and College Union (UCU)?because employers could see ¡°in real time¡± divisions within 바카라사이트 union playing out.

But during previous campaigns, such as 바카라사이트 strike action that opposed?cuts to pensions provided by 바카라사이트 Universities Superannuation Scheme,?Twitter had been an ¡°extremely positive factor¡±, he said,?and had helped academics focus on a common objective and coordinate with a sense of ¡°we are doing this toge바카라사이트r¡±.

tom.williams@ws-2000.com