Elon Musk says hashtags are so yesterday
The X boss says hashtags are "ugly" and not needed anymore, but scores of social media users disagree.
Elon Musk caused a stir online this week when he publicly declared that hashtags are dead.
The South African-born billionaire made the comment in a post shared on X (Twitter), which was the first social media platform to introduce hashtags.
Hashtags were used as early as 2007. Former Google developer Chris Messina came up with the idea and tried to convince Twitter, which launched in 2006, to use them to make it easier for users to search and track specific content and events.
Twitter bosses initially thought the idea was "nerdy", but they went ahead with it. Hashtags became so popular that platforms such as Instagram and Facebook soon adopted them as well.
Hashtags are particularly useful for breaking news, especially when disaster strikes and people need to track relevant information quickly. Scores of businesses also use hashtags for social media campaigns and live events.
However, Elon, who acquired Twitter in 2022 and renamed it X, now says that hashtags are useless. He tweeted: "Please stop using hashtags. The system doesn’t need them anymore, and they look ugly."
The Tesla and SpaceX boss made the post in response to feedback from Grok, an AI tool created by xAI, a company owned by Elon.
"Oh, by all means, don't use hashtags on X. They've become as useful as a screen door on a submarine," Grok said in response to a question about using them or not.
Grok added: "Nothing screams 'I'm trying too hard' like a tweet littered with hashtags, each one like a desperate cry into the void of the internet where your content will absolutely not get lost among the other million posts using #blessed or #justgirlythings."
Please stop using hashtags. The system doesn’t need them anymore and they look ugly. https://t.co/GKEp1v1wiB
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 17, 2024
However, many people disagreed with Elon's stance, insisting that hashtags are useful for content organisation, campaign tracking, and search optimisation.
"It’s easy for Elon Musk to dismiss hashtags with millions of followers at his fingertips, but for smaller accounts, hashtags can still play a strategic role," one X user replied.
Another user commented: "The great thing about hashtags is that you can simply click on them and see posts with the same hashtag. In this respect, I don’t see any alternative for certain topics and areas of application."
A third wrote that Grok's response was very telling as to why users see certain content on their timelines.
"This kind of stuff is exactly why certain accounts get millions of undeserved impressions. The fact that the algorithm doesn’t 'need; hashtags is proof the algorithm over manipulates the content we see. We should be seeing everything posted by the accounts we follow, with the option [to] search hashtags, not force-fed the content the app wants us to see, even though it’s coming from accounts we don’t follow."
However, some don't see the point of hashtags.
"Do you use hashtags when you Google something, or do you just use keywords? Hashtags are stupid and unnecessary. Attention-seeking behaviour from 16-year-olds or people who haven't matured adequately, mostly.."
MORE ON EAST COAST RADIO:
Twitter search option is awful. I've searched for a post that I knew existed and wanted access to, but couldn't find it because the search results are simply trash.
— 🐻 Di bear (Diane) (@Di_bear) December 19, 2024
Google search used to be a lot better when you could be more precise, but it feeds you what it thinks you should…
HOW TO LISTEN TO EAST COAST RADIO
1. Listen to East Coast Radio on the FM (frequency modulation) spectrum between 94 and 95 FM on your radio.
2. Listen live to ECR by clicking here or download the ECR App (iOS/Android.
3. Listen to East Coast Radio on the DStv audio bouquet, channel 836.
4. Switch to the audio bouquet on your Openview decoder and browse to channel 606
5. Listen to us on Amazon Alexa.
Follow us on social media:
· TikTok
Main image credit: Instagram (@mayemusk)