X starts removing headlines for news stories

X users reading the news on the platform woke up confused Thursday, as the site displays only articles’ graphics and not headlines.

Many news stories, including those from major sources, showed up as only images. If users want to know what the headline is, they have to click the image and be taken away from X.

Previously, the X post would show the article’s graphic as well as the headline underneath. Now news organizations must manually write the headline into the post before sending it or else users will see just a picture.

While the change was sudden, it had been announced by owner Elon Musk. In August, he confirmed that X would be removing headlines from stories. According to the billionaire, he made the decision to “greatly improve” the look of the site.

That argument didn’t sit well with some.

“It is disappointing to see another helpful and important feature of a text-based information platform be removed because one guy thinks it looks too cluttered,” user Cody Johnston wrote.

The move probably is part of Mr. Musk’s goal of keeping traffic on X. This week, he confirmed that the site’s algorithm intentionally does not boost external links, making it easier to keep users on the site.

Mr. Musk ultimately wants news outlets and other writers to post their work directly to X. In a post this week, the owner said the best way to drive engagement with your work on X is to post long-form content directly to the site.

When Mr. Musk announced that political advertising would make a comeback on the site, he also said X would beef up its content moderation team that focuses on election information.