This post is going to be from a personal perspective.

I believe the promise of digital town squares are over. It was a flawed and ambitious idea all along. Reputable media sources will rise again as people search for stability. They will bear more responsibility as ever.

Twitter might’ve built somewhat of a global fast communications tool credibility along the way, yet with Musk’s purchase of Twitter this has already partly been thrown in the rubbish, with the other half slowly falling in as well. The platform lost the reputation of a serious place for citizen journalism. This would make Bluesky and Mastodon cherish. Unfortunately, the hoped golden age of federalised social media didn’t come. It made microblogging more shattered.

This is a great ground for traditional media houses to gain readers. X.com made headlines by changing the platform into a more subscription-based model. Soon came out Meta with the same idea. But the quality of the content on these platforms stayed the same. While a subscription to a news site pays the journalists to make content, instead to the developers of the platform.

My thesis is that I find myself reading different news sites similarly to when I used to read different social media sites. Maybe I’ve grown into a boomer (read: old person), but I see the same pattern somewhat carry on to other people. Truth is harder to find when (AI) information is overwhelming. More will be expected of journalists and media houses to accurately gather and objectively report on topics.

On a sidenote: I already worry about one of Estonia’s leading media source’s, Postimees’ credibility with its ties with a political party. Estonia’s high spot in the media freedom index shouldn’t be abused.