X's New Feature Uncovers: Many Pro-MAGA Influencers Are Foreign Agents
The "About This Account" Feature on X Reveals Foreign MAGA Influencers
The "About This Account" Feature on X and its Initial Impact
Social media platform X, owned by Elon Musk, recently unveiled a new transparency feature called "About This Account." This feature, rolled out to X users on Friday, allows other users to view information about the account holder, such as location, join date, number of username changes, and how to download the X app. Unexpectedly, this feature revealed that many prominent supporters of the "Make America Great Again" (MAGA) movement are, in fact, foreign individuals, sparking widespread debate about foreign interference in American politics.
Meaning of "MAGA": The "Make America Great Again" (MAGA) movement is a political slogan and political movement that originated in the United States, associated with former President Donald Trump. This movement aims to restore America to what its supporters consider a golden age, often involving policies focused on nationalism, immigration reduction, and "America First" in international affairs.
- Source One: Dictionary.com.
- Source Two: Britannica.
Revealing the Identity of Foreign Influencers and Reactions
Immediately after the launch of the new feature, rival political groups rushed to analyze the locations of opposing accounts online. These analyses revealed that many key influencer accounts supporting the MAGA and far-right movement operate from outside the United States. In this context, Democratic influencer Harry Sisson, who has millions of followers on TikTok, commented, describing this day as "one of the greatest days on this platform." Sisson saw the revelation of these foreign influencers seeking to impact American politics as a victory for Democrats who have long warned against such practices.
Investigations showed that dozens of prominent accounts promoting the "America First" slogan or the MAGA movement are active from foreign countries such as Russia, India, and Nigeria. Notable examples include the "MAGANationX" account, which has around 400,000 followers and presents itself as a "national voice for the people," and was found to be based in Eastern Europe.
Another example is the "IvankaNews" account, a fan account for Ivanka Trump followed by one million people, which regularly publishes content about the dangers of Islam, threats of illegal immigration, and support for Trump. It was revealed that this account is run by individuals from Nigeria.
In the context of reactions, Mika Irfan, a law student and leftist influencer, described this revelation as "the end of the world for the online right," noting that half of the large accounts supporting the right were actually foreigners impersonating Americans.
X's Response and the Challenges Posed
For his part, Nikita Bier, X's Head of Product Development, acknowledged "some aspects that need improvement" in the new feature and pledged to address them. For example, Virtual Private Network (VPN) users can change their account's location information, a loophole the company plans to address. Users noticed the tool's removal just hours after its launch, and some speculated that the revelation of far-right accounts' origins might be the reason. However, the feature appeared to be back online at the time of this report's writing. On October 26, 2022, Elon Musk entered Twitter's headquarters in San Francisco.
The exploitation of fake accounts on social media platforms to bolster support for specific individuals or ideologies in the United States and around the world has long been observed.
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