Anti-LGBTQ_increased on Twitter since Musk

Andrea Austria / Media Matters

Research/Study Research/Study

Anti-LGBTQ hate has increased on Twitter since Elon Musk officially acquired the company

Media Matters has found that prominent anti-LGBTQ accounts' “groomer” rhetoric has exploded in reach since Musk's takeover – retweets of their use of the slur have increased over 1200%

Special Programs LGBTQ

Written by Kayla Gogarty

Published

A new report from Media Matters and GLAAD shows that since Elon Musk took over as Twitter CEO and plunged the company into chaos with erratic decisions, anti-LGBTQ rhetoric has increased on the platform, despite his claims and actions to the contrary, including disbanding Twitter's Trust and Safety Council. Media Matters has found that retweets of right-wing figures’ tweets that included the anti-LGBTQ “groomer” slur increased substantially, as did mentions of right-wing figures in tweets containing the slur.

Key findings include:

  • Anti-LGBTQ accounts that saw substantial increases in both retweets of and mentions in tweets with the slur included Tim Pool, Jack Posobiec, Jake Shield, Gays Against Groomers, Blaire White, Allie Beth Stuckey, Andy Ngo, Seth Dillon, and Mike Cernovich. 
  • Collectively, these 9 accounts saw an over 1,200% increase in retweets of tweets with the slur, going from nearly 3,600 to over 48,000, and they saw an over 1,100% increase in mentions in tweets with the slur, going from over 5,300 to more than 65,000.
  • Other right-wing accounts also saw substantial increases of mentions in tweets containing the slur. For instance, Libs of TikTok saw more than a 600% increase in its mentions, going from nearly 2,000 to nearly 14,000, while Rep. Mayra Flores (R-TX) saw a nearly 6,000% increase, going from nearly 70 mentions to over 4,000. 
  • Anti-LGBTQ figure James Lindsay and right-wing satire site Babylon Bee have earned thousands of retweets on posts perpetuating the anti-LGBTQ “groomer” slur and have been mentioned in thousands of tweets referencing the slur since their accounts were reinstated by Musk. 
  • Mentions of prominent LGBTQ accounts in tweets with the “groomer” slur also increased during the time frame, with one account seeing an increase of over 225,000% after Musk officially acquired the platform.

Retweets and mentions of right-wing figures’ anti-LGBTQ tweets and accounts before and after Musk acquired Twitter (3)

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  • Musk is unilaterally reinstating previously banned Twitter accounts, including anti-LGBTQ accounts

  • Elon Musk officially acquired Twitter on October 27 and tried to reassure advertisers and civil rights leaders that the platform wouldn’t “become a free-for-all hellscape” and would “continue to combat hate & harassment.” 

    Despite these assurances, Musk quickly started reinstating previously banned accounts, including those of high-profile right-wing users such as former President Donald Trump. Notably, Musk has also reinstated at least two accounts — those belonging to anti-LGBTQ figure James Lindsay and right-wing satire site Babylon Bee — that previously violated the platform’s rules against hateful content. 

    Prior to Musk’s acquisition, Twitter’s policy against hateful content applied to the term “groomer” when it was used as a descriptor in the context of discussion of gender identity. Right-wing figures, including Lindsay, repeatedly violated this policy, using the slur to harass LGBTQ people. The Babylon Bee was suspended in March after repeatedly misgendering U.S. Assistant Secretary for Health Rachel Levine.

    Media Matters analyzed Twitter data from the Dewey Square Group (sourced via the Twitter API) and found that since being reinstated, Lindsay earned over 1,700 retweets on his posts perpetuating the anti-LGBTQ “groomer” slur, and he has been mentioned in over 4,700 tweets mentioning the slur. The Babylon Bee has similarly adopted the anti-LGBTQ slur and earned nearly 1,600 retweets on its “groomer”-related posts, and it has been mentioned in over 1,700 related posts.

  • Media Matters found that mentions of right-wing figures in tweets containing the “groomer” slur have increased since Musk’s acquisition

  • Further analysis of the data compared tweets mentioning the anti-LGBTQ slur (“groomer” or “grooming”) during the two months before (September 27 through October 27) and after (from October 28 through November 28) Musk’s acquisition of Twitter. We found that retweets of right-wing figures’ tweets that included the slur increased substantially, as did mentions of right-wing figures in tweets containing the slur.

    Anti-LGBTQ accounts and figures including Libs of TikTok, Matt Walsh, and Christopher Rufo; prominent conservative politicians such as Reps. Mayra Flores (R-TX), Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), and Lauren Boebert (R-CO), and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott; and right-wing media outlets and personalities Tomi Lahren, Charlie Kirk, the Hodgetwins, Donald Trump Jr., and Fox News all saw significant increases in their mentions in tweets with “groomer” rhetoric during the studied time period. 

    For instance, Libs of TikTok saw more than a 600% increase in the mentions, going from nearly 2,000 to almost 14,000, while Flores saw a nearly 6,000% increase, going from nearly 70 mentions to over 4,000.

  • Twitter mentions of right-wing accounts in anti-LGBTQ tweets before and after Musk acquired the company

  • Right-wing accounts that saw substantial increases in both retweets of and mentions in tweets with anti-LGBTQ rhetoric

  • Tim Pool

    Right-wing YouTuber Tim Pool’s main Twitter account, which has roughly 1.4 million followers, saw an increase of over 2,700% for retweets of tweets with the slur, going from over 700 retweets to more than 20,200. Pool also saw an increase of nearly 3,000% in his mentions in tweets containing the slur, going from more than 1,000 mentions to over 31,000.

    Tim Pool_groomer tweets

    Jack Posobiec

    Neo-Nazi collaborator Jack Posobiec’s account, which has roughly 1.9 million followers, saw an increase of over 2,800% for retweets of tweets with the slur, going from over 400 retweets to nearly 11,700. Posobiec also saw an increase of over 1,500% in his mentions in tweets containing the slur, going from more than 800 mentions to over 13,300.

    jack-posobiec_groomer-tweets

    Jake Shields

    MMA fighter Jake Shields’ account, which has roughly 270,000 followers, saw an increase of more than 9,500% for retweets of tweets with the slur, going from over 60 retweets to more than 5,800. Shields also saw an increase of over 8,000% in his mentions in tweets containing the slur, going from more than 80 mentions to over 6,500.

    Jake Shield_groomer tweets

    Gays Against Groomers

    Anti-LGBTQ account Gays Against Groomers, which has roughly 140,000 followers, saw an increase of nearly 300% for retweets of tweets with the slur, going from nearly 1,500 retweets to over 5,700. Gays Against Groomers also saw an increase of over 300% in its mentions in tweets containing the slur, going from more than 1,900 mentions to over 7,700.

    Gays Against Groomers_groomer tweets

    Blaire White

    Right-wing YouTuber Blaire White’s Twitter account, which has roughly 465,000 followers, saw an increase of 3,300% for retweets of tweets with the slur, going from nearly 50 retweets to almost 1,600. White also saw an increase of over 2,500% in her mentions in tweets containing the slur, going from nearly 80 mentions to over 2,100.

    Blaire White_groomer tweets

    Allie Beth Stuckey

    Anti-LGBTQ podcaster Allie Beth Stuckey’s account, which has roughly 390,000 followers, saw an increase of over 80,000% for retweets of tweets with the slur, going from 1 retweet to over 800. Stuckey also saw an increase of over 2,500% in her mentions in tweets containing the slur, going from nearly 40 mentions to over 900.

    Allie Beth Stuckey_groomer tweets

    Andy Ngo

    Far-right grifter Andy Ngo’s account, which has roughly 1 million followers, saw an increase of  over 70% for retweets of tweets with the slur, going from nearly 500 retweets to over 800. Ngo also saw an increase of more than 50% in his mentions in tweets containing the slur, going from nearly 800 mentions to nearly 1,200.

    Andy Ngo_groomer tweets

    Seth Dillon

    Babylon Bee CEO Seth Dillon’s account, which has roughly 500,000 followers, saw an increase of over 120% for retweets of tweets with the slur, going from over 360 retweets to over 800. Dillon also saw an increase of more than 160% in his mentions in tweets containing the slur, going from nearly 500 mentions to over 1,200.

    Seth Dillon_groomer tweets

    Mike Cernovich

    Rape apologist Mike Cernovich’s account, which has roughly 1 million followers, saw an increase of roughly 66,000% for retweets of tweets with the slur, going from 1 retweet to over 660. Cernovich also saw an increase of over 700% in mentions in tweets containing the slur, going from nearly 120 mentions to over 1,000.

    Mike Cernovich_groomer tweets

  • LGBTQ accounts have seen substantial increases in mentions in tweets with anti-LGBTQ rhetoric

  • LGBTQ accounts have also seen an increase in anti-LGBTQ rhetoric targeted against them, including their mentions in tweets with the “groomer” slur — with one account seeing an increase of over 225,000% after Musk officially acquired the platform.

    Groomer tweets to LGBTQ people_1

    Groomer tweets to LGBTQ people_2