The Evolution of X Communities: A New Approach to Member Vetting

• X

The social media platform X, previously known as Twitter, has recently introduced a member vetting feature to its private Communities. This feature, which requires users to answer a question before gaining access to a community, mirrors a similar procedure implemented across numerous Facebook Groups. The move signifies a step towards a more selective and exclusive online community culture.

As X Communities evolve to include member vetting features similar to Facebook Groups, the landscape of social networking continues to shift.

Emulating Facebook's Approach to Community Building

On Facebook, group admins can pose multiple questions to potential members and insist they agree to the group's rules. Some Facebook Groups go a step further, quizzing would-be members on the group's laws to ensure they have been read and understood. X's recent move is a nod to this approach, albeit in a more simplified form.

Implications of the New Vetting Feature on X Communities

X's newly introduced vetting feature could encourage a more exclusive status for Communities on the platform, where only selected individuals are permitted to join. Admins can use the answers provided to the vetting question to evaluate a potential member's suitability for the group. This could offer protection against spammers and bots, known for disrupting group dynamics with unwelcome posts. However, this also paves the way for potential misuse, where groups could use this feature to keep out individuals who might flag or report inappropriate content.

Unlike Facebook, where anyone can create a group, the creation and management of Communities on X are limited to verified X Premium subscribers. Nevertheless, joining Communities is open to all X users. This distinction has led to some Communities amassing sizable user bases, such as the Apple Community with 52,500 members and Movie Twitter boasting 119,600 members. However, the overall adoption of this feature may be limited because only some users are permitted to create their Community.

Communities under Elon Musk's Ownership

Interestingly, despite the numerous feature cuts under Elon Musk's ownership of Twitter/X, Communities have survived. Musk, the executive of Tesla and SpaceX, has axed several features and services, including the newsletter platform Revue, ad-free news articles, and support for third-party clients. Yet, Communities continue to be a part of the X platform, albeit a somewhat underdeveloped feature that doesn't fit into X's fast-flowing timeline.

These Communities provide quieter, more isolated spaces for users to post about specific topics or themes. It remains to be seen what larger vision X has for its group feature or how it might become a more prominent part of X's service. As the landscape of social networking continues to evolve, it will be interesting to monitor the ongoing development of X Communities and the potential impact of their new member vetting feature.