Stephen King announced he is leaving Twitter as the social media platform has become 'too toxic' for him.
via: The Wrap
“I’m leaving Twitter,” King said on Thursday night, while referring to X by its old name. “Tried to stay, but the atmosphere has just become too toxic. Follow me on Threads, if you like.”
King’s Twitter account, which has 7 million followers, was still active on Friday morning; others who have announced their departure recently, like MSNBC’s Joy Reid, have deactivated their accounts.
The day prior the author — who joined the exodus of Hollywood stars leaving the platform — dispelled speculation about Musk kicking him off X, after he made a joke about the billionaire's friendship with President-elect Donald Trump.
'I see there's a rumor going around that I called the Musk-man Trump's new first lady. I didn't, but only because I didn't think of it,' he wrote on Wednesday.
'There's also a rumor going around that Muskie kicked me off Twitter. Yet here I am,' King added.
King was referring to recent Musk memes, which were AI generated, and depicted the tech entrepreneur as Trump's First Lady.
According to the Daily Dot, the memes started after Musk was featured in a Trump family photo.
They then gathered steam when a false rumor was spread that King had been banned from X for referring to Musk as 'Trump's First Lady.'
The writer has spoken out against the Tesla and SpaceX founder a number of times.
In the days before and after the Republican candidate's win, he has repeatedly poked fun at Musk for supporting Trump.
The day prior to announcing his departure, he shared a photo of his dog, writing, 'Molly, aka the Thing of Evil, considers putting the bite on the Musk-man.'
And earlier this month he wrote: 'The Musk-man has posted 3,000 times on Twitter in the last month. Most are pro-Trump disinformation and outright lies. Remember, he has skin in the game. Consider his posts accordingly.'
King notes on his website that he is a Democrat and is open about his political views on the platform.
The bestselling author has sold more than 350 million book copies worldwide, with books like IT, Carrie, The Shining and the Green Mile all being turned into blockbuster movies.
King became the latest celebrity to sever his relationship with the social media platform in the wake of Trump's presidential election victory.
Actress Alyssa Milano, 51, also announced she was leaving on Thursday, posting a screenshot of her deactivated account on Instagram.
'Goodbye, X. Hello, Blue Sky,' she wrote in her caption, in reference to the competing social network Bluesky, which recently became the top-ranked social media app on the Apple charts.
The upstart service has gained an influx of at least 700,000 new users since the US presidential election, The Guardian reported on Monday.
Jamie Lee Curtis, 65, revealed she left on Wednesday, also via Instagram.
Unlike some accounts and publications that have left X after Musk took control of it, Curtis appears to have completely deactivated her account, rather than leaving it up while ceasing to post.
Curtis announced her news in an Instagram post featuring a screenshot that was apparently taken from her Twitter account on her phone.
'Your account is deactivated,' it read, with 'Sorry to see you go. #GoodBye' in smaller text at the bottom.
Curtis, who has been open about her past struggles with drug and alcohol addiction, quoted the serenity prayer in her caption.
'God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change. Courage to change the things I can. And the wisdom to know the difference,' she wrote of giving up X.
The Halloween star didn't specifically state her reasons for leaving the controversial platform, though many users leaving X have taken issue with Musk's closeness to Trump and Trump's election victory.
Also on Wednesday, the television journalist Don Lemon announced that he would be leaving X as well.
Unlike Curtis, he issued a statement on X, though it wasn't clear if he planned to deactivate his account in the future, or if he would stop posting while leaving his archive visible for his followers.
'I've loved connecting with all of you on X, but it's time for me to leave the platform,' he began on what looked like a photocopy of The Don Lemon Show stationery.
He said he no long believed that X was a 'place for honest debate and discussion, transparency, and free speech.'
Lemon also attributed his decision to X's new terms of service, which are set to go into effect on Friday, November 15.
The site is following the path of many corporations in forcing users who try to take it to court to have their cases heard in 'the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas or state courts located in Tarrant County, Texas.'
'As the Washington Post recently reported on X's decision to change the terms, this "ensures that such lawsuits will be heard in courthouses that are a hub for conservatives, which experts say could make it easier for X to shield itself from litigation and punish critics,"' Lemon continued. 'I think that speaks for itself.'
He concluded his post with a list of his other social media accounts for fans to find him at, adding, 'I hope you will join me there.'
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