Donegal County Council officially suspends posting on its X account

Donegal County Council has officially suspended posting on its X account.

The shutdown follows a recent proposal made by Glenties Councillor Michéal Cholm Mac Giolla Easbuig, over concerns regarding harmful content on the platform - including AI-generated sexual abuse images of women and children being created and shared on the platform via its AI chatbot, Grok.

In his motion, Cllr Mac Giolla Easbuig stated that "X has become a platform where the sexual abuse and exploitation of children and adults is widely reported and insufficiently addressed."

“As a public body with a duty of care, the Council should not maintain a presence on, or lend credibility to, a platform that fails to adequately protect users from such harm.

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“The Council should instead use other communication channels that better align with its safeguarding responsibilities and public values," he said.

Councillors subsequently passed the motion, with the Council putting in place a period of a month to create an "exit strategy" from the platform.

The Council officially announced that it had "suspended posting information" on X on Friday, however its prior posts still remain visible.

Up-to-date Council information remains available through Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and the Donegal County Council website.