**The Guardian Abandons 'Toxic' X Platform, Cites Conspiracy Theories and Political Influence**

In a notable shift from previous practices, The Guardian has announced it will cease posting content on Elon Musk’s social media platform, X. The media outlet criticized the platform’s environment, branding it “toxic” due to the prevalence of conspiracy theories and Musk’s ability to influence political dialogues.

The Guardian has maintained more than 80 accounts on X, cultivating a following of 27 million users. However, in a statement to its readers, the publication explained that the drawbacks of remaining active on X now exceed the benefits. “We believe that our resources could be more effectively utilized to promote our journalism elsewhere,” the note read.

While The Guardian will no longer actively post on X, the platform's users will still have the ability to share its articles. Additionally, The Guardian's reporters will continue to utilize the site for newsgathering purposes. According to The Guardian, the recent U.S. presidential election underscored its long-held concerns about X being a “toxic media platform” and Musk’s influence over political discourse.

This move by The Guardian follows a similar decision by NPR last year, which withdrew its accounts after Musk labeled it as "state-affiliated media." Although Musk touts himself as a “free speech absolutist,” he has repeatedly targeted news outlets for unfavorable stories, misleadingly accused mainstream publications of minimizing assassination attempts on figures like Donald Trump, and even sued advertisers who opted to avoid X.

The Guardian emphasized that, while social media can indeed be a valuable tool for news organizations to reach wider audiences, X’s role in promoting the publication's work has now significantly decreased. “At this juncture, X now plays a diminished role in promoting our work,” the statement concluded.