Star Wars star Mark Hamill, author Stephen King and millions of others now are using the social-media site Bluesky.

Bluesky has become an alternative to Twitter with a large left-leaning user base. (El editorial/Shutterstock) • Research shows Bluesky user growth directly correlates with controversial Twitter/X events,

A comprehensive analysis of social media platform Bluesky provides insights into its structure, polarization and political leanings, in a new study published in PLOS One by Dorian Quelle and Alexandre Bovet,

Social media was once a shared space, but the rise of X and Bluesky signals a new era of ideological division. What was once a single digital town square has split into rival platforms, each carrying political baggage that shapes users’ experiences and perceptions.

It is not a mass exodus, yet, but a growing number of artists, critics and the like are leaving the Meta platforms of Instagram and Facebook for the newer and seemingly neutral so

"First day here," one Bluesky user wrote in response to the company's post about its growth. "Just getting my feet wet. Was a longtime Twitter user but it's a shell of what it used to be."