The Woolly Elephant in the Room

Migration

Mastodon 2022 logo design 
By Eugen Rochko & other Mastodon contributors
 https://blog.joinmastodon.org/, AGPL,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=120470930

November 2022 is turning out to be period of rapid change and a questioning of power structures. Whilst a lot of the US was focused on political campaigns, there was also a test of boundaries on social media as the Twitter platform reacted to the new owner's radical and mercurial attempts to reshape it. What he couldn't control was whether the users approved and continued to use the site. 

Like many, I felt that Twitter was nearing a point where it may collapse, after many important staff were laid off or resigned. That led to many questioning whether it was worth hanging on what started to be dubbed 'the hellsite'. As a result, many looked to other alternatives and one new option started to get a lot of traction - the Mastodon federated server site, or 'fediverse', of networked online communities. 

What Next?

With so much up in the air, what does this mean for artists, museums and galleries, online collaborations and so on, that used Twitter as a key publicity and campaign tool?

Ultimately, I suggest that it means a period of upheaval and uncertainty but I see a new, positive community spirit emerging on Mastodon. Questions remain on how artists and galleries will network on that platform, as it has no clear focal point yet, whilst still keeping their other accounts alive.

Even as and when Twitter burns down, many useful links have been formed on that site and no-one should leave it until too late to note their key contacts, just in case their favourite faces aren't on Instagram or the like. If you're unsure how to make the transition, there are lots of guides about by now and tools like Debirdify, Fedifinder or Twitodon produce a spreadsheet for you, which you upload to Mastodon to follow everyone on it automatically.

We adapted to the rise of Meta (Facebook/Instagram), YouTube and TikTok without too much complaint since 2004/2010, so I think that where there's a will there's a way and I hope for great things.

You can find me with my new woolly friend at ohai.social/@srfirehorseart

The srfirehorseart profile on Mastodon.