Meta has confirmed the long-speculated shutdown of its platform monitoring tool, CrowdTangle, effective August 14th. The decision comes as Meta aims to focus resources on its new research tools, Meta Content Library & Content Library API, in response to evolving technology and regulatory changes.
CrowdTangle, a contentious tool within Meta since 2021, faced scrutiny over concerns of providing misleading data about Meta’s apps’ role in spreading divisive political content. Despite disputes and the disbandment of the CrowdTangle team in July 2021, the project continued until now, offering insights to users.
While Meta refers researchers to its other data tools, including Meta Content Library, the shutdown of CrowdTangle diminishes overall research capacity around Meta’s apps. Many marketers and journalists utilized CrowdTangle for trend analysis, monitoring page posts, and analytics.
Though the shutdown is understandable given Meta’s shift in focus and lack of dedicated support, its discontinuation marks the end of a valuable research and insights tool. Users still have a few months to leverage CrowdTangle’s data before its closure.
