Text is hotter than ever. Threads, the “Instagram but with a tech focus” social media app constructed by Facebook, now has a feed devoted to following…the individuals you observe. Meanwhile, TikTok, the Chinese social video app, has additionally adopted Threads’ lead by including its personal text-only posts.

Meta chief government Mark Zuckerberg publicly introduced the change on Tuesday morning, publicly filling a gap within the utility that folks have complained about because the inception of Threads earlier in July. Threads nonetheless exists as a cell app for Android and iOS, however Meta has but to publish a model for the Web.

At this level, although, social media has change into profoundly bizarre.

Just fifteen days after chief government Linda Yaccarino proclaimed that there was only one Twitter, there isn’t any Twitter in any respect: Musk renamed the corporate X.com over the weekend. Though the web site displays the title change, the cell app nonetheless retains the Twitter emblem. (Reports that X.com was referring to tweets as “xeets” look like false, according to Snopes). But Twitter X has additionally quietly proposed or truly moved extra options below the paid umbrella of Twitter Blue equivalent to limiting direct messages until the person subscribes to the $8/mo service.

Jason Cross

Threads, in the meantime, was as soon as seen because the escape hatch for many who wished to keep away from having to scroll previous Twitter Blue replies to any submit. However, reports from Sensor Tower and different sources counsel that Threads every day customers has fallen from 44 million to 13 million versus 200 million every day customers.

Though there’s now an official following tab on the prime of the Threads feed, the app itself had apparently gently transitioned into the brand new structure. Though my private feed did embrace some random accounts (sorry, Rep. Katie Porter), it was primarily accounts I adopted—who have been a few of the most lively on the platform, who would present up on my feed. Ironically, my Threads feed at present lacks the “Following” function, however is chock-full of random accounts.

Mark Hachman / IDG

Meanwhile, TikTok jumped on the textual content craze as effectively. “When you access the Camera page, you’ll be able to choose from three options: photo, video, and text,” the positioning said, saying the brand new text-only posts. “By selecting text, you’ll be directed to the text creation page, where you can type out the content of your post.”

TikTok can be providing stickers, tags and hashtags, and background colours—very similar to Threads and Facebook.