🧵 Newsfluencers Are Stealing the Spotlight from Twitter’s Successors
✨ Everyone's focused on which app will become the next Twitter. But what if that race no longer matters — and Newsfluencers are already reshaping the game?
🕡 It’s 6:30 a.m. on a bridge day in Berlin. New York greets the night at 12:30 a.m. In LA, it’s still Thursday — 9:30 p.m. and counting.
🖐️ Hello everyone, Daniel here — Category is: Reality Realness. Served this week with an unexpected twist. What if none of the current social networks racing to become the next Twitter actually ends up taking that role?
I’m genuinely excited! Two of my favorite topics come together this week. Since the start of this pop-up newsletter, we’ve been following the race to see who will become the new Twitter. Now, fresh data on real media usage (my second favorite topic) brings an unexpected — and almost spectacular — twist.
🧠 What’s Inside This Issue: This week, the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism at the University of Oxford released its Digital News Report 2025.
This annual study has been tracking global news consumption trends since 2012 — and in my opinion, it’s one of the two most important studies on digital media. Based on surveys conducted in over 40 countries and involving more than 90,000 respondents, the 171-page report also offers scattered but significant insights into the microblogosphere. That’s exactly what we’ll explore in this issue.
1️⃣ Weekly Edit
🧶 Reality Is Calling
So …
A good dose of reality can be grounding. I often recommend it to the media and social media industry — especially when brands desperately try to jump on TikTok, even though the platform overwhelms them and their actual audience isn’t even really there.
But hey — “everyone’s doing it,” or at least that’s what the industry thinks.
📉 A proper reality check starts with a sober look at real media usage:
In Germany, only 15% of the population actually uses TikTok — and not even across the board. Even Instagram and Facebook still reach almost as many people under 25 as TikTok does.
So … why all the fuss about launching a TikTok account?
And now…
⚠️ The social media world urgently needs a reality check too.
Yes, social platforms are evolving fast — and it’s exciting, even thrilling. But it’s time to pause and ask:
Is the race to become the next Twitter really as meaningful as we think it is?
Twitter used to be the place for news online — where news was born, shared, and consumed. From top-tier agenda-setters to teenagers. So naturally, when Twitter collapsed, all eyes turned to its rivals: X, Threads, Bluesky, Mastodon.
But what if this gap is being filled by something else entirely?
📊 Fresh data from the Reuters Digital News Report 2025 brings a much-needed moment of clarity this week.
🚀 Here’s what we learn from the Reuters Digital News Report 2025 about Threads, X (formerly Twitter), Bluesky, Mastodon, the Fediverse — and the future of social media:
Threads
Minimal impact: Threads reaches only 1% of respondents weekly for news across the 12 tracked markets.
Used as refuge: Some progressive users and journalists left X for Threads, but that migration didn’t shift overall news reach significantly.
Limited adoption: Threads, like Bluesky and Mastodon, remains niche and experimental, not yet influencing broader news consumption.
X (formerly Twitter)
Stable or rising reach: Despite controversies, X’s news reach increased in some countries: +8 percentage points in the U.S., +6pp in Australia and Poland.
Rightward audience shift: After Elon Musk’s takeover, right-leaning users tripled on X, making it more politically polarized.
Progressives exit: Many liberal users and journalists abandoned X, especially in the UK and U.S..
Still influential: Despite decline in engagement, X remains influential in shaping public discourse, especially among creators and right-wing influencers.
Bluesky
Low global reach: Weekly usage for news is ≤1% across markets.
Journalist migration: Some journalists relocated to Bluesky after X's shift, but the platform hasn’t gained critical mass.
Mastodon
Negligible usage: Similar to Bluesky, usage remains below 2% for news globally.
Part of decentralization trend, but its complexity may limit wider adoption.
Fediverse
Niche but ideologically relevant: The Fediverse supports non-algorithmic, decentralized models, appealing to tech-savvy or disillusioned users.
Not widely adopted: Still limited in impact on general audiences – dwarfed by centralized platforms like YouTube, Facebook, and TikTok.
Competes poorly with creators: Fediverse platforms lack the virality and influencer economy that fuel other networks.
✳️ The Social Media Reality
Video-first shift: Platforms like TikTok and YouTube are now dominant news sources, especially among young users.
Personality-led media: Influencers, YouTubers, and podcasters are overtaking traditional news brands in reach and trust—particularly among younger audiences.
Fragmentation: Six networks (YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, WhatsApp, X) each have ≥10% weekly news reach—compared to just two a decade ago.
Algorithmic discovery > social graph: TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts prioritize AI-curated content over friend-based sharing.
News avoidance and trust issues: Many users, especially in the U.S., avoid traditional news, turning instead to creators and platforms they find more engaging—even if less accurate.
AI integration: Chatbots and AI summaries are emerging as new sources of news. But while young users embrace it, most people remain sceptical about AI-generated news.
Creator ecosystems are winning: Platforms reward creators and influencers with reach and monetization, reshaping how news and commentary are delivered.
Geopolitical and regional differences:
U.S., Latin America, and Southeast Asia: High social-first news use.
Europe and Japan: Traditional news more resilient, slower shift to platforms.
🤔 So, what are the unexpected facts that surprised you?
Here are my takeaways:
📉 The actual relevance of the microblogosphere is still quite limited — especially when compared to Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, or even the ghost of Twitter past.
🧑💻 News influencers are not just making headlines — for many, they’ve become a primary source of news consumption.
🌐 The Fediverse does show promising signs of future success — but a true mainstream breakthrough may still be years away.
🧵 So… is the race to replace Twitter even necessary?
Maybe not. News influencers didn’t have to win a platform war to gain relevance — they simply built loyal followings. But whether that enthusiasm from audiences will be sustainable is still unclear. Even podcast listeners go through wildly inconsistent phases — even with their favorite shows.
If a platform manages to provide a proper environment for daily news engagement again, it could become more relevant than any influencer.
But that only works if users discover a use case that makes the platform an everyday essential in their digital routine.
🕰️ It took Twitter nearly five years to reach that level of relevance.
Threads, Bluesky, Mastodon — and even X — are still in their discovery phase.
🪞 The reality check shows:
Helping users define why they should come back every day is not just a nice-to-have — it’s the platforms' most important task.
If they succeed in fully shaping their identity and role, they might not only catch up to Twitter’s former importance —
they might surpass it.
2️⃣ Style-Check: Threads gets stylish with the Fediverse … 🧵
… but is it more than just a fashion statement?
Threads has taken another confident step toward the open social web — and it's starting to show. As Platformer’s Casey Newton reports, Meta has rolled out a dedicated Fediverse feed inside Threads, visible to users who’ve activated the feature. The new feed acts like a digital runway for posts from Mastodon and other ActivityPub-powered platforms, signaling that Threads isn’t just dabbling — it's stitching itself more deeply into the federated fabric.
The timing couldn’t be more telling. With Bluesky's growth slowing and engagement dipping, Threads is positioning itself as the more stylish and scalable alternative — with the weight of Meta's infrastructure behind it. The Fediverse feed sits prominently on the search page, offering a curated selection of cross-network posts, currently labeled as “Featured.” It’s still read-only, but Newton notes that Meta plans to enable full interaction (likes, replies, reposts) over time.
This quiet rollout reflects a strategy that’s more “slow fashion” than fast trend. While critics worry about Meta’s influence in the open web, it’s also clear that Threads is doing more than lip service. The integration is real. The UI is clean. The intent seems long-term. And most importantly: it introduces the Fediverse to millions without asking them to change their habits — just their feed.
So is Threads now the most accessible front door to the decentralized web? Possibly. But as always in fashion — and federated tech — it’s not just about the cut; it’s about the craftsmanship. And this one’s coming together stitch by stitch.
🧶 Style Verdict: Meta’s Threads just threaded the needle. The Fediverse gets its most polished showcase yet — but the big question is whether it’s haute couture and opens the fediverse for mainstream or mass production, that hardly struggles to find it’s position in users digital daily life.
3️⃣ FediForum Review: Fabrics & Patterns That Are Shaping the Fediverse 🪡
Earlier this month, the first of two annual editions of FediForum took place — an unconference, held virtually, dedicated to the evolving ecosystem of the Fediverse.
A glance at the themes and sessions reveals the patterns currently shaping decentralized social media.
Here are a few resources we recommend exploring:
🔗 On the official website, you’ll find the full schedule — and, at the bottom, a list of session notes for every talk.
▶️ A YouTube playlist with recordings of the sessions is also available for rewatching and catching up.
🎬 Debuting at the event: The new image film "Fediverse: A New Era of Social Media" — a short, hopeful narrative that frames federation as a way forward beyond platform monopolies:
Among the highlights: A keynote by digital rights activist Cory Doctorow titled “The Cost of Staying, the Power of Leaving: How Interoperability Can Save the Fediverse”:
Doctorow offered a sharp analysis of how monopolistic behavior, platform decay, and user lock-in undermine trust in centralized networks — and how the Fediverse can offer a radically different model.
His now-famous theory of "enshittification" — a term for the inevitable decline of platforms as they begin exploiting users and creators for profit — shaped the talk's central argument.
🗣️ “Every enshittifying program has a disenshittifying program waiting to be built.”
🗣️ “I’m not on Mastodon because of the software. I’m on Mastodon because of the people.”
Doctorow’s ultimate vision? That platforms should fade into the background — like working plumbing — and that users should stay not because they’re trapped,
but because they want to.
4️⃣ This Week’s
Style & …
🧵 🧵 Substack Becomes the Place to Be Heard
This week, Substack proves that style isn’t just about slogans — it’s about stance. Two high-profile launches have given the platform a tailored, purpose-driven makeover:
🎩 Gavin Newsom’s “Anti-Disinfo” Substack (June 17, 2025)
California’s governor adds a sharp black blazer to Substack’s wardrobe, using it to “flood the zone” and counteract right-wing disinformation — echoing the direct tone of his podcast.
Newsom’s debut, featuring a personal op-ed and a high-profile interview, signals a strategic pivot toward unfiltered public dialogue.
🕶️ Terry Moran’s Post-ABC Pivot (June 12, 2025)
Longtime ABC anchor Terry Moran walked away from newsroom constraints and straight onto Substack — calling it “an amazing space” for serious, independent work in turbulent times.
His move, following a controversial X post and subsequent exit from ABC, feels like a clean editorial statement: independent, opinionated, fully engaged.
🌐 Substack’s Social Thread: Substack isn’t just a publishing tool — it’s now part of the decentralized social web. It has chosen Bluesky’s protocol (not the Fediverse’s ActivityPub) as its connective tissue: Substack newsletters can now be followed natively within the Bluesky ecosystem. A step toward making newsletters truly social — and searchable.🎯 Fabric Insights
🧵 Substack as a Statement Piece: Both launches reflect Substack’s evolution from a niche newsletter service to a durable fabric in the political and media wardrobe.
🧵 Editorial Tailoring: Newsom and Moran use Substack to express ideas on their own terms — unfiltered, immediate, and without editorial seam-ripping.
🧵 Style vs. Substance: It’s not about flash — it’s about narrative craftsmanship.
Neither launch is blow-dried for clicks; both present clean lines backed by clear intent.
✨ Stitch of the Week: Substack is the new bespoke choice for communicators seeking precision and authenticity. With these two contrasting yet complementary debuts, the platform proves its unique appeal: A place where bold editorial design meets a perfectly tailored message — no algorithmic over-styling required.
5️⃣ This Week’s …
… Stitches
🧵 Threads Adds Spoiler Tags — But Who Asked?
Threads is testing a new feature that lets users blur text and images with a “Spoiler” label. Mark Zuckerberg announced it with the kind of enthusiasm usually reserved for a Reality Labs demo — or a new AI-generated selfie.
The idea? Give people more control over how and when sensitive or surprising content is revealed.
Sounds useful? Maybe. But also: a little meh.
Sure, it’s nice to have a tool that lets you talk about TV finales or surprise gifts without ruining the fun.
But here’s the stitch that snags: Is this really what Threads needs right now?
In a year where everyone’s talking discoverability, engagement mechanics, and decentralized identity,
Threads is… introducing a feature Reddit users have had for years?
Meta is branding this as a fresh innovation — but let’s not pretend it’s a revolutionary hemline.
Threads still lacks a clear vision of how it’s fundamentally different from X or Instagram.
And adding spoiler tags, while cute, feels like sewing sequins onto a jacket that hasn’t even been tailored yet.
So yes — it might add a bit of fun to the feed.
But it’s not the feature that will define Threads.
And it’s definitely not what will rescue it from its mid-season style slump.
🧷 How to Stitch It: Cute detail, wrong focus. If Threads really wants to turn heads, it’ll need more than borrowed features from the Reddit rack.
🔍 Open Question for the Next Issue of Style & Stitches: /