US President Joe Biden has joined Threads, the social media platform launched by Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta, in a move seen as a rival to Elon Musk’s X. This comes just days after the White House criticized Musk for promoting anti-Semitism. Biden made his first post on his 81st birthday, stating, “Folks, it’s President Biden. You’re hearing from me today from a new platform but my message to you hasn’t changed.” He expressed optimism about America’s future, saying, “I don’t see a dark, dismal, divided future for America. I see an America about to take off.”
Threads was launched by Meta in July with the aim of challenging Musk’s X, previously known as Twitter, as the go-to platform for public statements by celebrities, companies, and governments. The White House confirmed that it has created Threads accounts for President Biden, First Lady Jill Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, her husband Douglas Emhoff, and the White House itself in both English and Spanish. A White House official stated that Threads provides an additional way for the administration to communicate with the American people about its achievements, such as creating 14 million jobs and lowering prescription drug costs.
The launch of Threads had been planned for several weeks, according to the White House. Meanwhile, advertisers have started to abandon X after Elon Musk’s controversial response to an anti-Semitic post on the platform. Despite condemning Musk’s actions, the White House has not yet made any changes to its plans to use a version of his Starship rocket for future Moon landings.
In response to Biden’s first Threads post on X, White House communications director Ben LaBolt promoted it. The White House reiterated its condemnation of Musk’s anti-Semitic rhetoric but stated that it did not currently have any plans to alter its use of his rocket technology. The article concludes with a note that it has been published from a syndicated feed and has not been edited by NDTV staff, except for the headline.
