Decentralizing the Blogosphere: Ghost Considers Joining the Fediverse

In an exciting development for the world of decentralized social media, Ghost, the open-source alternative to Substack's newsletter platform, is considering joining the fediverse. According to a recent post by Ghost's founder, John O'Nolan, the nonprofit company is evaluating the integration of its software with ActivityPub, the social networking protocol that powers the fediverse, a network of interconnected servers that includes platforms like Mastodon, Pixelfed, and PeerTube.

O'Nolan shared his thoughts on the potential federation of Ghost over ActivityPub, stating that the most frequently requested feature over the past few years has been to federate the software. With a sense of curiosity, he asked, "It seems like there are many potential ways to do it. Curious to hear how you would want it to work?" The post, shared on Threads and syndicated to Mastodon via Threads' own integration with ActivityPub, sparked a lively discussion among users.

The survey accompanying O'Nolan's post aims to gauge user interest and preferences regarding ActivityPub functionality within Ghost. It inquires about users' experience with existing ActivityPub platforms like Mastodon or Threads and how they envision federation working within Ghost. Additionally, the survey seeks to understand how federation would personally benefit Ghost users, inviting respondents to provide email addresses for optional further input.

While the launch of this survey does not guarantee an immediate commitment to federating Ghost, it represents a significant step toward reshaping the web into a more decentralized and user-centric ecosystem. In the aftermath of Twitter's acquisition by Elon Musk and the subsequent overhaul into X, online users have witnessed the vulnerabilities of centralized platforms firsthand. With a shift in ownership, platforms can undergo drastic changes, altering their ethics and long-term ambitions in ways that users may find unsatisfying.

By embracing the fediverse, Ghost could offer its users a portable social networking identity, allowing them to move their profiles and followers seamlessly between servers if they become dissatisfied with a particular platform's direction. This aligns with the broader trend of users seeking greater control and autonomy over their online presence and content. As the decentralized web continues to evolve, platforms like Ghost have a unique opportunity to lead the way in empowering users and fostering a more open and resilient digital ecosystem.