Washington, DC – The Friends Committee on National Legislation, along with nine other Quaker organizations around the world, announced today their disengagement from X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. Globally, this move within Quaker circles has come to be known as the eXodus and it has been a subject of much discernment.
Contact Tim McHugh: media@fcnl.org, 202-903-2515
“Changes to the X/Twitter platform increasingly contradict our deeply held Quaker principles of truth and integrity. This, in addition to genuine concerns that false news and narratives on the platform have contributed to real-world violence compel our disengagement,” said Bridget Moix, FCNL secretary general. “We are still committed to engaging with all people in our search for truth, but we will do it using less harmful social media platforms.”
This is not a decision that FCNL took lightly, especially since it has engaged a large community on this platform for more than 15 years. It has been in discernment regarding X/Twitter for at least two years. FCNL will remain active in five other social media platforms and has accounts in other platforms that have not yet taken off.
The World We Seek, FCNL’s Statement of Legislative Policy emphasizes that a strong, diverse, and independent media is a pillar of democracy. While it recognizes the positive changes social media has made, it also warns of the dramatic impact that its rapid and unregulated growth has brought to public discourse.
“Hateful and inflammatory speech, misleading information, and manifestly false assertions are now a common occurrence. While we continue to support the development and maintenance of a communication infrastructure that is readily accessible to all, we also recognize the need for steps that would increase the transparency, accountability, and reliability of publicly available information; protect the privacy rights of individual users; and mitigate the impact of hateful and incendiary speech,” FCNL’s policy statement says.
FCNL will continue to engage the public through its social media platforms on Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, BlueSky, and Instagram, and other communications channels. FCNL’s X/Twitter account will be archived as a way of hosting historical and accurate information and prevent an imposter account from taking root. We will also continue to monitor it and remain open to re-engaging in the future should X change its approach.
These are the other Quakers organizations who are announcing eXodus today are the Canadian Friends Service Committee, Quakers in Ireland, Quakers in Britain, Quaker Council for European Affairs, Woodbrooke, Pendle Hill, the Friend, Friends Journal, and the Friends World Committee for Consultation. Other Quaker organizations will make their own announcements soon.
To learn more, please visit www.fcnl.org.
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