Justin Hendrix is Editor and CEO of Tech Policy Press. Shutterstock For the third year, the LGBTQ media advocacy organization GLAAD has released a Social Media Safety Index (SMSI) that finds that major tech platforms are failing to keep LGBTQ+ users safe. The report was released at a time when the broader social and political context continues to grow more dangerous- in the US, more than 75 anti-LGBTQ bills were signed into law in state legislatures this year, and attacks both on- and offline are on the rise. Based on twelve indicators and a methodology designed in partnership with the nonprofit group Ranking Digital Rights and Goodwin Simon Strategic Research Group, the SMSI assigns social media companies a score based on its performance against the indicators. While none of the platforms achieve a passing score, Twitter is worst in class, with its score plunging 12 points compared to the prior year, to 33%. The company’s owner, Elon Musk, has used the platform to promote “bigoted and anti-LGBTQ rhetoric,” according to the watchdog group Media Matters for America, and the GLAAD report chronicles changes to Twitter’s policies under Musk that further endanger LGBTQ safety. ● Instagram: 63% (+15 points from 2022)● Facebook: 61% (+15 points from 2022)● TikTok: 57% (+14 points from 2022)● YouTube: 54% (+9 points from 2022)● Twitter: 33% (-12 points from 2022) GLAAD SMSI 2023 The SMSI report draws a connection between online hate and harassment and real world harms, including violence. GLAAD says the platforms profit from…Twitter Plunges on Annual Scoring of LGBTQ Safety on Social Media