Marine Tondelier, leader of The Greens party in France, has taken a hard stance against Elon Musk’s social media platform X (formerly Twitter), calling for it to be “regulated or shut down” if it doesn’t adopt stricter censorship measures.
During a November 18 appearance on Lundi, c’est politique on LCP, Tondelier labeled X a “catalyst for hatred” and a platform that enables harm.
“This social network is a source of suffering, both as a politician and as a woman, because it is extremely violent, all the time. I feel like it has become a catalyst for hate,” Tondelier stated, claiming that X allows users to “harm, to break people.”
While Tondelier admitted she actively uses X, she expressed frustration, saying she feels trapped by its dominance in the political-media landscape. She also maintains accounts on Instagram and Bluesky, though she lamented, “I’ve no choice but to be on X.”
Tondelier argued that platforms without censorship give undue advantages to those who stay, adding in a post on X after the debate, “I don’t intend to leave it to the hate-mongers; otherwise, they win.”
Since Elon Musk took over Twitter in 2022, rebranding it with an emphasis on free speech, many left-leaning users have migrated to alternatives like Mastodon or Meta’s Threads, though these platforms haven’t achieved X’s political impact. One notable contender, Bluesky, has gained traction as a decentralized platform offering users greater control.
In November 2024, Bluesky reported a user base jump from 13 million to 15 million in just weeks, with some days seeing up to one million sign-ups, reflecting the ongoing shift in social media dynamics. Tondelier’s remarks underline the tensions surrounding X’s role in shaping public discourse under Musk’s leadership.
