Two Oxfordshire councils remove themselves from X
South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse District Councils confirm their departure from the site
Two Oxfordshire councils confirmed they have removed their profiles from social media site X due to its integrated AI tool being used to for activities they called “completely unacceptable.”
After reviewing its use of the app, South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse District Councils decided to shut down their pages, following in the footsteps of Cherwell District Council earlier this week.
They said they had already significantly reduced their use of X over the past year as it has become progressively ineffective at communicating with local communities, but recent events have caused them to take things a step further.
This refers to the use of the platform's AI tool, Grok, to create and share fake sexualised images of people which the councils said goes against their commitments to safeguarding and safety, notably regarding women and children.
Cllr Bethia Thomas, Leader of Vale of White Horse District Council, said: "I deplore the recent examples that have been reported on the platform, which go against the principles of the council, treating people fairly, with respect and as equals.
"Given the company’s disappointing and slow response to widespread international alarm at what was going on, we’ve taken the decision to remove the council’s presence from the platform completely.
"As we do with all social media channels, we will keep this under review for the future if we can be reassured that the platform and its ownership is willing and able to take matters like this seriously.”
Cllr Maggie Cllr Filipova-Rivers, Leader of South Oxfordshire District Council, said: “People around the world have been appalled at the recent developments at X, where the kinds of content being posted using its Grok tool have been completely unacceptable and do not align with the council’s values.
"The company’s reaction has been slow and insufficient, and in my opinion, changes were only announced when it looked like the whole affair might harm its finances.
“We haven’t used X for routine service updates for some time but we’re taking this extra step to fully remove the council from the platform as part of our commitment to safeguarding all our residents, including women and children.”
They highlighted that residents can instead get updates from the councils on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, BlueSky, Nextdoor and WhatsApp, as well as on the councils’ websites, email newsletters and in the local press.