For Release: January 13, 2026
Contact: Steve Cooper, Editor GymCastic
CALIFORNIA—In 2024, after X owner Elon Musk gave the nazi salute twice at a rally, GymCastic has been puling back from the platform. We have stopped linking to it from our website, removed social sharing and profile links, and ceased publishing original videos on the platform. We have also refrained—but not completely eliminate—conversing on the platform. Today we are ceasing all posts and interactions on the X/Twitter platform.
The final straw is we can no longer, in good conscience, post on a platform that knowingly produces Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) while deflecting responsibility. This is not a bug, it’s a feature. As noted in the recent 5th Rotation column, after Musk’s takeover, among the many heinous transgressions under his leadership, X has dismantled their human rights, accessibility, and AI ethics teams and dissolved its Trust and Safety Council. And while X is currently blaming its users for prompting the system, it’s the system itself that is generating CSAM. To make matters worse, while the explosion of CSAM started making headlines, the Head of Product at X bragged in a post about how high the engagement on the platform was. Again, this is a feature and not a bug to be exterminated.
So we’ve decided that we have to go; even if that means we’re leaving behind a vibrant and valuable segment of the gymnastics community. We don’t want to give X any content, views or clicks. If sexualized deepfakes of children don’t have you checking your moral compass, nothing will. It terrifies and disgusts us that we could post a picture of a gymnast, and as a feature of the platform someone else could have them undressed in the comments.
We need to remind ourselves that we all use these platforms as a choice and for a purpose. The few benefits of X no longer outweigh our concerns. The good news is we’re not the only ones. This past week Utah Gymnastics informed its followers that they can be found elsewhere after they stopped posting on X back in October.
We recognize that no platform is perfect and they all have their own issues or shortcomings. The excuses for staying on this particular platform, for us, can no longer be justified. We will miss everyone on X/Twitter, but hope to reconnect elsewhere, including on: BlueSky, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, Threads, TikTok and of course, our own website and forum, GymCastic.com.
@GymCastic on Twitter
2012-2026
About GymCastic
Founded in 2012, GymCastic is the No. 1 gymnastics podcast in the galaxy. A weekly talk show with interviews, opinions and analysis for fans by the wittiest, wisest analysts in the game.
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