By Omar Mohammed
Reporter, Economy & Finance
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Elon Musk's X, formerly known as Twitter, has updated its policy to allow what it calls "consensually produced and distributed" adult content on the platform, a move that has sparked criticism on social media that it will damage the user experience.
On X, the platform said that "we believe that users should be able to create, distribute, and consume material related to sexual themes as long as it is consensually produced and distributed.
"We believe in the autonomy of adults to engage with and create content that reflects their own beliefs, desires, and experiences, including those related to sexuality. We balance this freedom by restricting exposure to Adult Content for children or adult users who choose not to see it."
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The move has ignited some criticism of the platform, including on X itself.
"I hate to say it, but he's kind of ruined this platform. He's turning it into onlyfans. It's even called X," Cassandra MacDonald, referring to Musk, posted on the platform.
OnlyFans is a subscription-based platform where users can post adult content they share with subscribers.
"X allowing hardcore porn is [messed up]," another user Tim Pool wrote on X, using an expletive to describe their disagreement.
The platform noted that it will restrict such content behind a warning before users can access it. It would require that those who post on the platform change their settings to allow for such warnings.
"If you regularly post adult content on X, we ask that you please adjust your media settings," it said about the policy last month. "Doing so places all your images and videos behind a content warning that needs to be acknowledged before your media can be viewed. You can also add a one-time content warning on individual posts. If you continue to fail marking your posts, we will adjust your account settings for you."
The policy suggested that underage users will not be able to access the content.
"Users under 18 or viewers who do not include a birth date on their profile cannot click to view marked content," they said.
Musk bought Twitter in 2022 in a $44 billion deal with the goal of making the platform a "digital public square" and soon after changed its name to "X" The move attracted criticism, with some users claiming that they would seek alternatives, arguing that the company's new direction could be detrimental to its popularity.
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