X to Cut Payments for Clickbait and News Aggregation Accounts

X is implementing a significant overhaul of its creator payout structure to penalize accounts that rely on clickbait and rapid-fire news aggregation. The platform is reducing financial compensation for accounts that flood the timeline with repurposed content in an effort to prioritize original creators.

Nikita Bier, the head of product at X, announced on April 11, 2026, that all aggregator accounts had their payouts reduced to 60% during the current cycle. This represents a 40% reduction in earnings for these accounts, with a further 20% reduction planned for the next pay cycle.

Targeting Aggregation and Clickbait

The policy specifically targets accounts that engage in rapid-fire news aggregation and those that frequently use clickbait tactics to drive engagement. Bier stated that X will reduce payments for habitual bait posters who use ‘🚨BREAKING’ on every post.

Aggregation accounts typically copy and paste content from other companies or creators en masse, often without providing attribution. Under the previous structure of the revenue-sharing program, these accounts could earn larger payouts by generating high engagement through these methods.

It became abundantly clear: flooding the timeline with 100 stolen reposts and clickbait everyday crowded-out real creators and hurt new author growth

Nikita Bier

X is shifting its revenue allocation to reward the effort required to produce original content rather than rewarding the user who helps that content travel the furthest. Bier noted on April 10, 2026, that the platform is allocating a portion of revenue exclusively to original content creators for the current payout cycle.

Reposts & commentary will always be a core pillar of X, but our Revenue Sharing program should incentivize original, high-quality content that brings new value to the Timeline

Nikita Bier

Impact on High-Profile Creators

The change in payout policy has led to the demonetization of several high-profile accounts. Conservative news accounts including American Citizen, Ethan Levins, and Dominick McGee have reported that they are no longer receiving payments from the platform.

Dominick McGee, who posts under the name Dom Lucre, has 1.6 million followers on X. McGee has previously been banned from the platform in 2023 and demonetized in 2024. however, he stated in a previous interview with The New York Times that he had been earning $55,000 a year from X.

Following the notification of his demonetization, McGee criticized the move on April 11, 2026, arguing that he is one of the hardest working creators on the platform. While he acknowledged that labeling every post as breaking news would constitute clickbait, he claimed that very few of his hundreds of daily posts use the BREAKING label.

Program Integrity and Reach

X has clarified that these financial penalties are not intended to limit the visibility of content or restrict what users can say on the platform. The company maintains a distinction between the right to speak and the right to be compensated by the revenue-sharing program.

Bier stated that while X will never infringe on speech or reach, the company will not provide compensation for the manipulation of the program or our users.

Moving forward, accounts that consistently misuse the BREAKING label or post clickbait may face permanent deductions in their earnings. The platform’s goal is to ensure that the revenue-sharing model supports genuine creators and fosters the growth of new authors by reducing the dominance of automated or low-effort aggregation.