Tharoor’s Twitter account sees a ‘haemorrhage of followers’; seeks explanation

Tharoor tweeted, “My @Twitter account has witnessed a slow but steady haemorrhage of followers this year, from a peak of 8.495 million to 8.472 today. Attempts to obtain an explanation from @TwitterIndia for this have drawn a blank. Is Twitter culling its subscriber base? If so, why every day rather than in one fell swoop? Or are more and more people cancelling their Twitter accounts? I do believe we have a right to know.”

Others also voiced similar concerns, with some opposition leaders also alleging manipulation of social media accounts belonging to the non-ruling government members.

“@Twitter @TwitterBlue @elonmusk must explain it. This has become a common thing in India. Particularly with the accounts held by the opposition side, it’s happening,” Sanjay Nirupam, his same party member said.

What caused Tharoor’s Twitter followers count to drop?

While no official response has been provided by Twitter to Tharoor’s question, apart from a genuine drop in followers, these also may be the potential reasons for the decline in followers and engagement:

Removal of inactive accounts?

Elon Musk, who has been actively involved with Twitter, has made changes to the platform since his acquisition, wanting to make it the best platform for ‘free speech’.

Musk recently said that Twitter would remove accounts that have been inactive for several years.

READ HERE: Twitter followers may drop as Elon Musk set to remove inactive accounts

Bot accounts inflated the follower count?

Twitter has also deactivated numerous, reportedly millions, bot or fake accounts that violated their terms of service. These accounts were following other users resulting in a decrease in followers. This could also be a potential reason affecting Tharoor’s account.

An algorithm that suppresses visibility?

Another factor could be an algorithm that suppresses visibility. Musk confirmed the existence of such an algorithm on Twitter, which affected the engagement of his account as well. However, he mentioned that the algorithm had been updated after causing significant issues.

READ HERE | Shadow banning of Musk’s Twitter account : An ‘idiotic algorithm’ behind this

Shadowbanning of account?

Some users have alleged shadowbanning, where Twitter limits the visibility of certain accounts. In one of the so-called “Twitter Files”, it was alleged that the company build blacklists and actively limited the visibility of certain accounts.

Musk previously said that the platform will implement measures to rectify the issue. He tweeted in December, “Twitter is working on a software update that will show your true account status, so you know clearly it you’ve been shadowbanned, the reason why and how to appeal.”