News headlines on Twitter may be removed
According to the statement, the image will still serve as a link to the article, but there is no timeline for its rollout or whether it will be implemented. “This is something Elon wanted,” the source says about the change, while also stating, “They presented it to advertisers, they didn’t like it, but it’s happening.”
If the change rolls out, it means that anyone posting links on X, from individual users to publishers, will have to manually add their own text next to links they’ve shared on the service; otherwise the post will only show one image with no context other than URL superimposition.
With this change, Musk seems to aim for a few things. The primary goal seems to be to reduce the height of tweets so that more posts can fit in the visible portion of the timeline. Also, Musk believes this change will help curb clickbait.
However, X is no longer just a place of 280 characters. X Premium subscribers can create content of 25,000 characters. Musk wants creators and journalists to take advantage of it. The post shared by Musk a few hours ago also points to this: “If you are a journalist who wants more freedom to write and higher income, post directly on this platform!”