Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo announced on Monday that she is withdrawing from the platform X, formerly known as Twitter, describing it as a "giant global sewer" that is "destroying our democracies" by spreading abuses and misinformation. Before Elon Musk purchased the "Twitter" platform in 2022, he laid off thousands of employees, including content moderators, rebranded it to (X), and the platform lost many major advertisers while facing severe criticism, including from the White House, for not taking sufficient actions to combat antisemitism.
Hidalgo stated in long posts in both English and French, "This platform and its owner deliberately fuel tensions and conflicts," highlighting manipulation, misinformation, antisemitism, and attacks on scientists, climate experts, women, and liberals. She questioned, as a socialist politician who lost the presidential election and garnered only 1.7% of the vote in 2022, "Has this platform become a giant global sewer, should we continue to engage with it?"
She added, "I refuse to endorse this wicked scheme." Recently, Hidalgo faced criticism for taking a trip to French Polynesia under the pretext of inspecting a surfing site for the 2024 Olympic Games, but opponents argued that it was outside her jurisdiction as she visited her daughter living there. Users on X and opposing politicians criticized her with the hashtag #TahitiGate during the trip, which was partially funded by taxpayers.
