While it may seem like certain people are posting to Twitter 24-7, the social network's most active users are not tweeting as often these days,
So-called "heavy tweeters" have been in "absolute decline" since the COVID-19 pandemic began, according to internal documents seen by Reuters. Twitter considers someone a heavy tweeter if they log in at least six or seven days a week and post at least four tweets per week.
Less than 10% of Twitter's monthly users are heavy tweeters, but they create 90% of all tweets and half of global revenue, Reuters says.
It seems counterintuitive that, when the world is forced inside for months on end, fewer people turned to social media. Yet, Twitter researchers are left wondering, "Where did the tweeters go?" An internal study finds that many turned their attention to adult content and crypto—neither of which is particularly appealing to advertisers.
Twitter earned more ad revenue from the US alone than all other markets combined in its fourth quarter, Reuters said, citing a company investor letter. Dyson, Mazda, Forbes, and PBS Kids recently pulled their ads from parts of Twitter due to tweets soliciting child sexual abuse material.
Even popular topics like fashion, celebrities, e-sports, and online streaming personalities have taken a dip as users likely decamp to rival platforms like Instagram and TikTok.
"We regularly conduct research on a wide variety of trends, which evolve based on what's happening in the world," a Twitter spokesperson told Reuters. "Our overall audience has continued to grow, reaching 238 million mDAU [monetizable daily active users] in Q2 2022."
The news comes just days before Elon Musk plans to close his $44 billion Twitter buyout and potentially cut as much as 75% of the roughly 7,500-member staff—a move workers say will "hurt Twitter's ability to serve the public conversation."
"A threat of this magnitude is reckless, undermines our users' and customers' trust in our platform, and is a transparent act of worker intimidation," according to an open letter from Twitter employees, published by TimeTime. "We cannot do our work in an environment of constant harassment and threats."