Twitter claims 99% of its content is healthy, the internet rolls its eyes

As it struggles to win back advertisers, Twitter boldly claims that over 99% of the content you see on the site is “wholesome.”

Company representatives, including new CEO Linda Yaccarino, publicly dismissed a Bloomberg article(Opens in a new window) That said, Twitter has seen a spike in hate speech and misinformation since Elon Musk took over the company in 2022.

“This is an absolutely false statement. 99.99% of Tweet impressions are healthy,” according to a send(Opens in a new window) from the official Twitter Business account.

The statement sparked incredulous responses from users across the platform, which is filled with controversial takes, user crushes, and heated political debates. “You are tall?” a user published(Opens in a new window) in response through an animated GIF.

Tweet(Opens in a new window)

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a Democrat from New York and a frequent critic of Musk, also couldn’t help but laugh as she dismissed the claim. “I have never experienced more harassment on this platform than I do now. People are now paying to give more visibility to their harassment,” she said tweeted,(Opens in a new window) a reference to Twitter Blue, which allows anyone to buy a verified blue tick for $8 a month.

Part of the problem is that Twitter uses the word “healthy” to loosely describe its content moderation efforts. In reality, the company is likely to equal health with content that doesn’t break its rules, such as pornography, inaccurate statements, and inflammatory political commentary, along with low-quality ads for things like marijuana edibles and hentai-themed games.

(Credit: Twitter)

Bloomberg article says Twitter has experienced a wave of hate speech and misinformation, citing findings from third-party watchdog groups, such as the Center for Countering Digital Hate(Opens in a new window). For example, you can find Twitter posts mentioning “Hitler was right,” along with users changing their screen names to headlines like, “I hate Jews so much it’s unreal.” Other tweets that remain active include “if you encourage transsexuals to read children’s books you’re a pedophile” and “Diversity is a code word for white genocide.”

Twitter claims the findings are flawed and says its content moderation approach is now a “free speech, not reach” policy. Rather than deleting or banning users, Twitter limits the reach of tweets “that violate our policies by making the content less discoverable.”

“For example, compared to a healthy Tweet, any Tweet tagged with this enforcement is limited by scaling and suffers a dramatic drop in reach of more than 80%,” Yaccarino tweeted(Opens in a new window). “We also proactively prevent all ads from appearing next to any tagged content.”

Ideally, this content moderation will get advertisers back on Twitter at a time when Musk admits his ad revenue is down 50%.

However, the Center for Counter Digital Hate says the volume and engagement of hate speech on Twitter has still increased, despite the company’s efforts at content moderation.

“Every other platform will tell you the job is never done,” Yaccarino retorts. “That’s true for them and for Twitter. But Twitter’s progress is real, we’ve been transparent about it and we’re proud of it.”