X Plans to Remove Headlines from Links to News Articles

(FILES) This photo illustration shows the X logo (formerly Twitter) on a smartphone screen in Los Angeles, California, on July 31, 2023. (Photo by Chris Delmas / AFP)
(FILES) This photo illustration shows the X logo (formerly Twitter) on a smartphone screen in Los Angeles, California, on July 31, 2023. (Photo by Chris Delmas / AFP)
TT

X Plans to Remove Headlines from Links to News Articles

(FILES) This photo illustration shows the X logo (formerly Twitter) on a smartphone screen in Los Angeles, California, on July 31, 2023. (Photo by Chris Delmas / AFP)
(FILES) This photo illustration shows the X logo (formerly Twitter) on a smartphone screen in Los Angeles, California, on July 31, 2023. (Photo by Chris Delmas / AFP)

Elon Musk is pushing to change how news links appear on his social media platform X, formerly called Twitter, in a move that could potentially undermine the ability of news publishers to draw audience.

X is planning to remove the headline and text while retaining just the lead image from links to news articles shared on the platform, Musk said in a post late on Monday.

Fortune had first reported the news on Monday, citing a source that the move was pushed directly by Musk.

The move is likely an attempt by Musk to get users to spend more time on X and push them to opt for the subscription service for more details.

It is not immediately clear how the move will impact advertisers on the platform that Musk claimed in July had 540 million monthly users.

Currently news links come up on the timeline of users as "cards" along with an image, source address and an abridged headline. Such packaging helps draw clicks and helps publishers gain readers.

But with the shortened links, users might end up writing some text along with their posts and eventually they could consider X's premium service that allows a single post of up to 25,000 characters.

With the changes, Musk is pitching X as a more relevant platform for content creators. Premium subscribers can now post longer videos, their posts are shown higher up and they also receive a cut of ad sales.



Final Crystal Triangles Installed on Times Square Ball ahead of New Year's Eve

Times Square New Year's Eve Ball is displayed at One Times Square, Friday, Dec. 27, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
Times Square New Year's Eve Ball is displayed at One Times Square, Friday, Dec. 27, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
TT

Final Crystal Triangles Installed on Times Square Ball ahead of New Year's Eve

Times Square New Year's Eve Ball is displayed at One Times Square, Friday, Dec. 27, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
Times Square New Year's Eve Ball is displayed at One Times Square, Friday, Dec. 27, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

The last of the crystal triangles that make up this year's Times Square New Year's Eve ball were installed on Friday morning, marking the first time in 10 years that all 2,688 were replaced at once.

Rapper Pitbull and inventor Joy Mangano were among those on hand to help the organizers of the celebration put the final pieces in place atop One Times Square, the skyscraper from which the 11,875-pound (5,386-kilogram) geodesic sphere drops to mark the new year, according to The AP.

A New Year's Eve ball was first dropped in Times Square in 1907. Built by a young immigrant metalworker named Jacob Starr, the 700-pound (318-kilogram), 5-foot (1.52-meter) diameter ball was made of iron and wood and featured 100 25-watt light bulbs. Six newer versions of the ball have been featured in the century-plus since that first celebration.

The only years no ball drop occurred were 1942 and 1943, when the city instituted a nightly “dimout” during World War II to protect itself from attacks. Crowds instead celebrated the new year with a moment of silence followed by chimes rung from the base of One Times Square.