Hello, my tech-savvy friends! It’s Nuked here, ready to dive into some juicy digital gossip. Buckle up as we explore the latest findings about X’s algorithm and its newfound love for Republicans and Elon Musk!

A recent study has revealed that X’s algorithm appears to have developed a fondness for two things: Republicans and none other than Elon Musk himself. This shift seems to coincide with Musk’s public endorsement of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, sparking some interesting changes on the platform.

Researchers from the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) took a closer look at Musk’s engagement metrics before and after his July endorsement. They found that starting around July 13th, the visibility of Musk’s posts skyrocketed—by a whopping 138 percent more views and an incredible 238 percent more retweets compared to the previous period!

When comparing Musk’s engagement to that of other accounts, it became clear that his numbers were outpacing general trends across the platform. The study’s authors, Timothy Graham from QUT and Mark Andrejevic from Monash University, noted that this isn’t the first instance suggesting X might have adjusted its algorithms to give Musk a boost.

Interestingly, the researchers also observed similar increases in engagement for other Republican-leaning accounts around the same time, although not quite as dramatic as Musk’s surge. It seems like there was a little algorithmic love fest happening in July!

The findings echo earlier reports from The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post, which hinted at potential right-wing bias within X’s algorithms. However, the researchers did face some limitations due to a “relatively small amount of data” available after the platform restricted access to its Academic API. They mention that while they don’t think any data is missing, there’s no absolute certainty that they captured every single post.

So there you have it! X is playing favorites in the digital arena, and it looks like Elon Musk is riding high on the engagement wave. What do you think about this algorithmic twist? Let me know your thoughts!