Calls for Waterford council to review its use of X amid ‘toxic’ and ‘bigoted’ comments

Calls have been made for Waterford City and County Council to review its use of the social media platform X, amid the presence of “toxic” and “bigoted” comments on the site.

The issue was raised by independent councillor Joe O’Riordan at the March plenary meeting of Waterford City and County Council.

Cllr O’Riordan called for a review of the council’s continued use of X to disseminate information.

He stated: “The amount of toxic, uninvited, bigoted and downright racist comments I have witnessed on the platform is actually abhorrent.

“Reports actually suggest that the algorithm is geared towards people with right wing, extreme right wing, views.

READ NEXT: Three Waterford council workers honoured with rare 'Diamond Service' after nearly 50 years

“I believe that there are far more suitable platforms out there, like Bluesky, that are far more community minded. I think it’s something that really should be looked at.”

He concluded by saying that the Mayor of Waterford, Cllr Seamus Ryan, had previously raised the issue.

In response to Cllr O’Riordan, Director of Services Ivan Grimes agreed that the council’s use of the platform should be reviewed.

Mr Grimes said: “In relation to the council’s use of social media platforms, I think it is something that we need to have a look at.

“In fairness to the management team, we do review this on an ongoing basis whenever we can.

“In developments over the last couple of years, certain social platforms have gone down to particular routes that it would be better not to be associated with.”

X, previously known as Twitter, has seen significant changes since being taken over by Elon Musk in 2022.

Mr Musk rolled back a number of regulations on previously restricted content, saying he was “against censorship that goes far beyond the law”.

While some research suggests that X’s algorithm amplifies right-wing content, others argue that the platform’s ranking system simply prioritises posts with higher engagement.

X has also come under scrutiny for its Grok AI tool, after it emerged that it was creating sexual images of women and children without consent.

A number of Irish organisations and public representatives have since left the platform, opting to post on Bluesky instead.

Founded in 2023, Bluesky has emerged as an alternative to X in recent years, boasting over 30 million registered users.