X, or Twitter if you prefer, backtracked on the decision to remove news headlines from link previews shared. Elon Musk has in fact announced that starting from the next update the titles will again be visible in the upper part of the images of the URL Cards, the cards that summarize the content of the links.
Musk did not specify when the update will be available, but motivated the decision with the desire to improve the experience of users and publications. In August, in fact, he declared that the elimination of the titles was done to “improve the aesthetics” of the sitebut the move had attracted much criticism.
In an upcoming release, 𝕏 will overlay title in the upper potion of the image of a URL card
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 23, 2023
Without the titles, in fact, users had to open the link to actually know the content, also risking coming across unwanted pages. Some publishers, to overcome the problem, had started writing the titles on the images themselves (or inserting them into the text of the post).
X will show news headlines again
The new URL Card should solve this problem, but its appearance is not yet known. It is assumed that it will be similar to that of the old Twitter, but with the title superimposed on the image. This could make publishers’ jobs easier, but will require greater attention to image quality.
X’s decision comes at a difficult time for the platform, which has suffered a boycott from large advertisers such as IBM, Apple, Disney e Comcast. An exodus that was a direct consequence of yet another controversial outing by Musk, who expressed his support for anti-Semitic comments. Also 11:11 MediaParis Hilton’s company, broke off its partnership with X just weeks after entering into it.
Musk is also involved in a lawsuit against Media Matters, an organization that accused him of spreading hateful content and allowing ads from brands like IBM and Apple to appear alongside it. Musk has denied the allegations and is seeking damages for defamation.