X tops Apple App Store amid Drake's nude video scandal
What's the story
X, the popular social media app, has topped Apple's App Store charts in terms of downloads.
This is because a leaked video, allegedly showing rapper Drake half-naked and involved in a sexual act, has gone viral on the platform.
The hashtag "drakevideo" has become a hot topic in the US. This marks the second time in two weeks, that X faced challenges in controlling explicit celebrity content on its platform.
Steps
X's response to celebrity image scandals
Spokesperson Joe Benarroch stated that X is "completely committed to maintaining a safe and respectful environment for all users" and has a "zero-tolerance policy" for nonconsensual nude images.
The firm has already taken action on thousands of posts and is "actively monitoring the situation" to remove new violating content.
However, The Verge discovered at least seven day-old posts featuring the alleged Drake video, some with millions of views.
Twitter Post
Musk cannot contain his happiness
𝕏 is now the #1 most downloaded app of any kind! pic.twitter.com/TeqWxcmZfs
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 7, 2024
Jubilation
Elon Musk's role in content moderation
X-owner Elon Musk, celebrated the app's rise to the top of App Store's list.
He tweeted, "If I had a dollar for every time the media reported that one of my companies was going to die, I would never need to raise money!"
Interestingly, Musk had reduced the teams that were responsible for moderating content and safety features on the site, shortly after acquiring the company in 2022.
Issues
Explicit pics of Taylor Swift were in circulation last month
X encountered problems similar to Drake's last month, when fake, AI-generated explicit pictures of Taylor Swift spread on the platform.
In response, the platform blocked all searches for her name.
On typing, "Taylor Swift" or "Taylor Swift AI" in the search box, users could see a "Something went wrong" message.
This also provoked the US Congress to create legislation that will safeguard people from deepfake porn.