Germany: Federal Commissioner for Data Protection advertises Twitter competitor Mastodon

After it became known that Elon Musk is buying Twitter, the Federal Data Protection Commissioner makes himself the voice of those who want to leave Twitter - and promotes the alternative "Mastodon".

After the decision was made to sell Twitter to billionaire Elon Musk, many users are turning their backs on the social network. Musk justified his purchase primarily by wanting to protect freedom of expression on the platform, after accounts have often been blocked in the past for dubious reasons - the case of Donald Trump being particularly prominent. Some users now fear an increase in "hate postings".

The outrage at the sale went so far that even high-reach twitters such as [comedian] Jan Böhmermann called for the establishment of a public service platform on which one could then regulate how the public discourse proceeds.

Already existing offers that compete with Twitter are also used, for example the alternative Mastodon, to which some already seem to have switched. Unlike Twitter, the platform is organized in a decentralized manner, and there are various “communities” with their respective servers. The network was founded in 2016 by Eugen Rochko. With currently 11.5 million registered accounts, the network is nowhere near the size of Twitter, which has around 200 million active users.

This is obviously not enough for the Federal Commissioner for Data Protection – his authority is advertising the Mastodon platform just one day after Elon Musk took over Twitter. The platform is presented in a newsletter, which has also been published on the website, and also explains how it is possible to get started quickly. The advertising text also emphasizes that the Federal Commissioner is pleased about the attention that the network is currently receiving.

Source: Tichys Einblick