February 18, 2026
Refresh roulette, meet politics
The political effects of X's feed algorithm
X’s feed may sway your vote — users call it rigged and rage-quit
TLDR: A Nature study says X’s algorithm pushed users toward Republican-leaning priorities and skepticism of Trump investigations, and the shift stuck. Comments explode: some rage-quit over forced algorithmic feeds, others blame X’s changing audience, while many demand open, transparent feed options—because small shifts can sway elections.
Nature researchers just dropped a bomb: switching from a simple time-ordered feed to X’s algorithm nudged users’ politics. Folks became 4.7 points more likely to prioritize inflation, immigration, and crime, and 5.5 points more likely to say Trump investigations are unacceptable. Worse, the change lingered, partly because people started following more conservative influencers.
The comments lit up like a fireworks show. rbanffy sneered that this is exactly why Twitter’s sale price was “remarkably low,” implying the real value was political steering. arwhatever rage-quit after X kept snapping back to the algorithmic feed: “No away I’m going to let that outrage-bait garbage even flash before my eyes.” Cue memes about “refresh roulette” and the rage-funnel.
Not everyone blames the code. Aurornis argues it’s just X’s new audience, since many left-leaning users fled to Bluesky, Mastodon, and Threads. mikepurvis wonders if “separating aggregation from content” solves anything when people already crave polarizing stuff. Meanwhile, reformers push open protocols and algorithm choice. The punchline? Who controls the feed may control the vibe—and maybe the vote. [link]
Some joked the algorithm is the “real campaign manager,” while others warned that small shifts like 4.7% can swing tight races and aren’t just internet drama today
Key Points
- •Nature study finds switching from reverse-chronological to X’s algorithmic feed increased prioritization of Republican-salient issues by 4.7 percentage points.
- •Exposure to X’s algorithm made users 5.5 percentage points more likely to deem investigations into Donald Trump unacceptable.
- •Attitudinal shifts persisted even after the algorithmic feed was turned off, partly due to users following more conservative influencers.
- •Findings reportedly differ for other platforms’ algorithms, suggesting X’s may be particularly prone to political manipulation compared with Facebook and Instagram.
- •The article calls for funding in open protocols, user choice of algorithms/platform providers, and greater algorithmic transparency.